Protégée
by Elielephant
Summary: A kiss of death from an island high in the sky comes crashing down at an auction house into the hands of a devilish man, giving him a protégée in the end.
1. Chapter 1

I've had this idea in my head for awhile. I have no idea if this is good, but this is what I got.

**Edited: I had a feeling that I got the wrong word for the title, which was true once I actually got around to looking it up. Sorry about that.**

* * *

Chapter 1

The trees of the grove towered over him as he walked, the bubbles of the island filtering up along the path. He easily sidestepped the bubbles in is path, even if his vision was slightly obscured because of his mask. His sense of sight may have been slightly impaired, but at least his hearing was sharper than most, enabling him to catch the smallest twig snap yards away. Or the distance screams he heard not too far away.

Now, he usually wouldn't count this to be important since his captain was waiting for him, and his captain didn't like to be kept waiting, but considering where they were currently, he decided that it wouldn't hurt to check it out, just to see what was going on. Many rivals were said to be on the last island of Paradise and he wanted to see the competition first hand before they headed off into the dangerous waters of the New World.

So turning off course, he walked away from the path running through the lawless side of the island and traveled through the alleyways. He easily maneuvered between the buildings clustered around the trees, either jumping over large roots and occasionally sliding under one. The streets were narrow with the stones that were broken and over turned by the thick roots growing up steadily over a course of time. And s musty smell hung in the air, his mask unable to block the stench that lingered around in the cramped alleyways on this part of town.

It was what he called an…_annoying_ smell, some would call it a disgusting one, but he had smelt worse over the years of being on the sea and his blades told that story. The blood may have been cleaned off after every battle was done, but the story remained along with every soul he took, named or not. He could still remember the screams as they cried for mercy or their shrieks of curses, damning him to hell…or that could have just been from the screaming of the group of men he walked upon.

He stood in the shadows, not because he was afraid, but because he wanted to get the best view of the whole thing. It was slavers, he could tell by the way they were dressed; looking like slum dogs without a penny to their names, but their weapons told another story. The story that they had the best in what the business could buy, the black market kind, the stuff that was made off of Marine blue prints, but the logo taken off just in case the fuzz decided to check it out, but everyone knew that wouldn't happen. Slavers never got arrested by the Marines because that's the way it rolled; if slavers weren't around then the stuffy nobles of the world couldn't get their trophies. It was a messed up world in his opinion, but he was a pirate, so he didn't really care in a way.

Though there were those groups of powerful people that charged against the slavers for their crimes, sorta like the situation he was looking onto now, but it was different still. There was no group, only a single person.

He watched the scene closely. It was difficult to distinguish the gender of the masked person holding a conscious slaver by the scruff of the his shirt. From what he could see, the masked person looked to be male due to the clothing: thick brown trench coat that almost completely covered the person's matching baggy pants and black shirt, and combat boots to finish it off. But as he took a closer look at the masked person, he was about to hop the fence to the person being a female; this person was just..._too_ lean to be a male. Like there was no muscle mass under the baggy clothing, but there were crazily thin men out there. He learned not to judge a book by it's cover, so he decided to label this person as a man.

Besides, the strength of the masked man seemed to be more than any woman he saw since he took down a large group of slavers single handedly. Then, when the masked man brought down a powerful fist to the slaver's jaw that he was still holding, a splintering crack could be heard, echoing even from where he was standing. He knew that the slaver's jaw was shattered to bits.

The masked man seemed to have gotten what he wanted, leaving the mess he made behind easily, stepping over body after body until he disappeared in the shadows of the alleyways.

Since the masked man was gone, he had also satisfied his curiosity and then pivoted on the heel of his foot and started back towards his original path to find his captain, but with a quick look at a clock hanging from a store's window, he saw that he was late. He wouldn't be in trouble, but Kidd was going to be mad; he didn't like to wait.

"If it isn't the Massacre Man Killer of the Kidd Pirates…" A burly voice chuckled deeply from behind, making him turn around to see the large form casting a shadow over his smaller one. He knew he was going to see a rival soon, but he never thought it would be Urouge. "How 'bout we see how tough you are, eh?" He continued to laugh, shifting the ebony pillar balancing on his shoulder, preparing for a fight.

Killer didn't say anything in reply and simply pulled out his blades, strapping them to his gauntlets. That was his answer to the rival pirate captain, and it seemed his captain was going to have to wait a little bit longer.

* * *

Lines of stuffy nobles filed in from the elegant hallways into the auditorium, going down the aisle to sit in the plush seats around the space, overlooking the main stage. People chatted away among them self, gossiping about who was who and who had what and what who was going to try and but.

In his mind, the sound of women's high pitched whinny voices and men talking slower to make them seem more important was like nails on a chalkboard. He grimaced even more at the sight, staring at all the women that actually covered up the assets that God gave them, plus the fact that he knew these women probably fixed the things that they didn't like with a little plastic, if you get his drift.

With a sigh, he crossed his arms over his chest, leaning against the pillar that was placed next to the entrance of the auditorium and he could feel the indents craved in the marble stone through the thick maroon colored fur of his coat; uncomfortable, but he didn't complain about petty things like that. It pinned him as weak, but he did complain about some things, usually when it had to do with waiting.

"Heat," He groaned, a hand reaching up to rub the bent up frustration rising under his skin at his jaw. "Where the fuck is Killer?"

"Don't know, Boss," Heat replied, shrugging his pale shoulders, which the tattooed skin moving to the red inked thorns shuttered like snakes. "He probably got caught up with something."

He groaned again, closing his eyes tightly and banged his head lightly against stone; this was frustrating.

"_Oi, Kidd,_" the familiar voice of his first mate came from behind and he looked over his shoulder to see Killer rushing down the hall, jogging lightly to make his long blonde hair bounce with each step. "I got caught up."

"See," Heat simply said.

Kidd just rolled his eyes, but then turned his full attention to his first mate. "Where've you been?"

"I got in a fight with Urouge," Killer answered.

Kidd's brow rose slowly towards his first mate. "Really, now? That's interesting, did ya win?"

"Drake interrupted it before it got good," Killer shook his head and there was a hint of a disappointed sigh in his voice.

"So it was a quick thing, huh?" Kidd continued to question curiously, tapping his fingers against his forearm. "Then why'd it take you so god damn long to get here?"

"Because I watched another fight with—" Killer started, but then he stopped when something seemed to catch his eye and Kidd was ready to ask what was going on, but his first mate continued: "That guy," and he jerked his head towards the masked man walking into the auditorium.

Kidd glanced over as the masked man walked passed him, the brown coat fluttering behind him as he walked calmly down the stairs with a number for the auction. "Looks like he's buyin' something," Kidd commented lowly.

"I watched him take out a lot of slavers," Killer explained. "He must want to win something back and he took out those slavers to get the information on where he could buy it back."

Kidd just grunted in response, his attention moving along to the nobles walking in, but they weren't just any nobles. They were World Nobles; the stuffiest of the stuffy bunch in the whole place. They looked like were from another planet, visiting to see what wonders they could buy at such a place. "Heh," Kidd smirked widely, his brows furrowing together. "Placed in the_ purity_ or the_ upper classes_. Why, the villains of the world look positively human in comparison. It's because the world's in the hands of scum like them that it's screwed all to hell. Don't they even realize that? I mean, we're not the nicest of guys, but at least we have out…_charming_ side, ain't that right, Killer?"

"Absolutely," Killer laughed dryly, and Kidd knew he was smirking behind that mask.

That made Kidd's grin widen ten fold and he began chuckling darkly. "Maybe if someone interesting shows up, we should by 'em, eh?"

"Like that guy," Killer added, jerking his head towards the masked man sitting with the peanut crowd excited to see the auction.

"Boss…" Heat spoke up quietly, leaning over to talk into Kidd's ear. "Look over there," he ordered in a suggestive tone, and Kidd did so.

"Hmm?" Kidd hummed, turning his attention and his eye caught onto a familiar face. "Heh," he smirked. "That's the guy from the North Blue. A man with a 200 million bounty hangin' over his head: Trafalgar Law. I've head rumors 'bout him, and they weren't pleasant," he said smoothly, and apparently the rival pirate captain heard him because the man looked over his shoulder with a smirk and gracefully flicked Kidd off like it was nothing. Kidd just smirked in return; treating it as a challenge, but he commented: "His manners aren't too good either, eh?"

The conversation ended at that because the lights dimmed dramatically, signaling to the masses that the show was about to start and the chatter simmered down to silence He deemed the auction to be rather uneventful, though he did find a few members of the Strawhat were there, but their captain was nowhere to be found, so he cast that aside and watched as nobles betted against each other for humans of all kinds, but then something new turned up that no one was excepting.

"**_Now folks_,**" Disco continued speaking through the microphone, his knuckles white with rage because one of his…merchandise decided to bite his own tongue and die than be sold as a slave. "**_Sorry about that…misfortune. We we're going to bring this item out and save it for another day, but we'll bring out this fine specimen before we wrap up the show,_**" He explained, snapping his fingers to the men working for the auction house and they rolled out a rather large cage covered by a deep velvet curtain.

Kidd's brow rose with interest, especially when the Strawhat crew started to get fidgety where they stood.

"**_We normally don't sell things like animals at a human auction, but you will see that this is a special case_,**" He told the crowd with a smirk, though the people started to whisper among themselves in confusion, but Disco looked like he was trying to ignore it as he snapped his fingers and the workers pulled the curtain, revealing what was hidden inside.

Kidd felt his brows furrow together in annoyance: it was a puppy. He would admit it was different because it had navy blue fur, but that could have easily been dyed. Also, a puppy that size could easily slip through the bars of such a large cage like that. The auction house probably rigged it so if the puppy got close, it would activate a mechanism that hurt the animal in some way. But there was still one thing that still confused him: what was a _dog_ doing at a _human_ auction?

"**_You are probably all wondering what a dog is doing here,_**" Disco continued, and that made Kidd roll his eyes. "**_So, to end the confusion I'll take this moment to explain to you all shortly what is going on. This little girlie has been with us for a while because according to our sources she is more than just a normal dog you see on the streets,_**" he said, holding out a remote with a single green button. "**_Observe_,**" and then he pressed the button.

A spark of electricity flashed through the trembling puppy's form, causing the animal to cry in pain, foaming at the mouth as it shook its head wildly. The shock, in Kidd's mind, should have killed the tiny thing instantly, but it did nothing like that. The puppy held its ground, shuttering with the electricity and started to grow in size: its torso becoming large, rippling with muscles that only a man would have and the skinny forelegs turning to arms, allowing the being to standing up right on its hind legs. A piercing roar ripped through the atmosphere, the being's jaw opening wide so it could showcase the stained fangs glaring in the spotlight. The being shifted around the metal floor of its cage, the fur covering its figure standing on end with rage for being locked up for so long, but it did not touch the bars; it must have been trained well. It would have to be if they wanted to sell the thing.

"**_This is the Werewolf, Bella!_**" Disco exclaimed with much enthusiasm, but the cowards seemed more frightened than anything, whispering hurried as they glanced with nervous eyes at the dangerous beast on stage. Disco saw that, so he had to turn this sale around or else no one would buy.

Though Kidd's interest was snagged like a rabbit in a snare. "A werewolf, huh? That seems pretty interesting, don'tcha thing, Killer?"

"Looks like its interesting to more than one person, too." Killer replied, jerking his head towards the masked man.

Kidd looked in the direction his first mate was motioning to, seeing that indeed the masked man was interested in the werewolf because he was standing up now, his body rigged stiff, almost trembling with rage. "Want to see if we can kill two birds with one stone?" He questioned his first mate and Killer just chuckled dryly with a shrug.

"**_Now this isn't a permanent stage, folks!_**" Disco reassured the masses of people he was trying to sell to. "**_With another shock, she can turn back to her puppy form,_**" and Disco showed them with another shock, the puppy did return back to it's normal animal state. "_**You all still look a little worried...but with this remote you can control it all, no matter what. Our men have been working with Bella for months, there is nothing that can go wrong, you all saw yourself, she didn't even try to escape when she had the power to do so!**_"

That seemed to reassure enough people that Disco went on with the bidding, starting with a low amount of only five million beli; rather make a small profit than none at all.

Kidd waited for the first bid and it was no surprise that it was the masked man.

"_Five million!_" He shouted almost as soon as Disco said the starting price, and the man's voice sounded rather harshly, almost like a hard core smoker would after years of wasting their breath on cigarettes, but the tone was also muffled by the mask, which could have added to the harsh tone.

"**_Five million!_**" Disco shouted, pointing in the direction he heard the voice. "_**Do I heard a bid higher than five million!**_"

Kidd smirked widely; it was time to start a show. "_Seven million!_"

"_**Seven million! Bids higher than Seven million!**_"

The masked man in front of him whipped around, scowling with a dangerous aura swimming around his form that it was affecting those sitting next to him. Though he was wearing a mask, Kidd knew when he was being glared at because of his first mate, but Kidd could stare back at the masked man, looking deep into the eyeholes of the mask, the shadow so dark that Kidd didn't even attempt to find out an eye color. But then his attention turned to a new voice added to the bidding war.

"_Ten million!_" It was Trafalgar, and that made Kidd growl at the smirking rival pirate captain trying to raise the price, just for kicks.

"_**Ten million! Any one higher than ten million!**_"

"_Fifteen million!_" The masked man countered.

"_**Fifteen million! Anyone going higher to twenty million!**_"

"_Twenty million!_" Kidd roared.

And almost as soon as Kidd said his bid, Law rebuked it. "_Twenty five million!_"

"_**I heard a twenty five million bid, anyone at thirty million!**_"

"_Thirty million!_" The masked man screamed.

Kidd growled, but then a hand on his shoulder made him snap his head around to see Killer watching him closer.

"You should back down," his first mate advised. "This may get out of control."

"No," Kidd snapped. "I'm not giving up now," and then he shouted "_Forty million!_"

"_**Forty million! Anyone to fifty million!**_"

There was no response from anyone; Trafalgar seemed to be satisfied with the price raise and the masked man looked to be out of money, so Disco did the count down and at the end, Kidd was the owner of his very own werewolf. He smirked; he may be out forty million beli, but if he planned it right then it would be worth it all in the end.

* * *

I don't know if they would sell a werewolf at the human action house, but when I had the idea, the thought about a dog in the _human_ auction house didn't settle in until I started writing it, so that's when I came up with the werewolf thing. So, sorry if it's technically not correct.


	2. Chapter 2

Guest: I think you see one thing, but I was thinking another, but truthfully both work. I was going for Italian for, like, beautiful woman, but I think it's actually Bella donna, if I didn't butcher my Italian. But I think you were thinking a totally troll on Twilight, right?

reighnstorm: It was just the beginning of a short story, compared to my others. I know how this will end and I don't have the attention span to drag it on when I have other stories to finish.

Son of Whitebeard: I think Bepo will win, but Bella's good...but she doesn't want to fight.

Alpenwolf: I hope the explanation above helps you understand a bit better...

Sorry for grammar mistakes.

Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece, but plot and OCs are mine.

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Chapter 2

The little pup yelped as Kidd held her up by the scruff of her navy blue fur, the animal's legs curled up tightly to her body as she shivered wildly. She whined and whimpered to be released from the pirate captain's grip, but Kidd had no intentions of dropping the animal anytime soon. He had plans for this little pup. He had a fucking werewolf for pity's sake; just think at all the havoc he'd be able to create.

He already used sweet ole Bella's powers on Kuma when the damn Shichibukai wouldn't go down after the fifth time. And when Bella got her teeth in him, she ripped that cyborg's head clean off. It was a little bit epic, and seeing the look on that smug-ass face of Trafalgar's was fucking priceless. The Dark Doctor looked like a fish out of water, his eyes wide and his jaw hanging open; he knew he missed out on an awesome deal.

Buying a werewolf that can kill a Shichibukai minion for only 40 million was a fucking steal. He didn't care if Jeremy said that it wasn't the 'real' Pirate Warlord; any minion that looked like Kuma and fought like him meant it was difficult to kill, especially when it kept getting back up. But, he was pretty sure by the next look on Trafalgar's face, he was sending the message that he wore the cyborg down, but Kidd fought the thing, too. It wasn't human and didn't weaken like a normal enemy.

So, basically, the point was Trafalgar was a cock sucker that missed out while Kidd made out like a bandit. Happy days, happy days.

The memory made Kidd smirk and he finally placed the trembling pup on the table before scratching behind its little ear with a finger. Oh, the work he can pull off with this little guy, err, _gal_, actually.

"That's an annoyin' soundin' thing," Scotty scoffed as he crossed his arms over his chest, scrunching his nose to the puppy that started to cry. "Ya picked up a real baby ther', Capt'n."

"A baby that knows how to kill," Killer corrected casually as he leaned against the wall behind his captain. "You should of seen her back at the Auction House."

"It was epic," Kidd smirked wickedly as the memories of bloodshed returned to his mind again, the Marines that Bella plowed through after Kuma was gone so they could get to safety. He laughed dryly and he started to pet his new little pup even more, but the comfort didn't make the shaking pup feel any better, not that Kidd noticed anyway.

Matt's pint of beer stopped halfway to his lips and he stared at his captain's rather…uncharacteristic actions. "You're acting a bit…_soft_, Capt'n."

Kidd glared darkly at his treasurer, his eyes falling hard with coldness at the words Matt used to describe him. "You're lucky you're an asset to the crew, or else I'd fuckin' shoot ya right now," and Kidd emphasized his point by jabbing the barrel of his revolver to his treasurer's forehead.

"Ya could always replace 'em," Scotty pointed out, rubbing his chin in thought.

"Scotty!" Matt barked angrily, scowling at the lookout. "You stupid ginger! Don't say shit like that!"

"But it's true!" Scotty defended with upmost seriousness. "_'_Ere in Shabondy, ther' must be someone to replace ya."

"_Scotty!_" Matt hissed murderously towards the lookout before turning back to his captain, a bead of sweat trickling down the side of his cheek when he was still at gun point. "Err, Capt'n, you ain't gonna kill me, right? …Right?" he gulped when there was only silence to his question. "Oh fuck, please tell me you ain't gonna kill me."

"Too late in the game for that," Kidd replied, taking the gun away. "Can't trust another with my money, but seriously," and then he shoved the revolver's barrel to Matt's forehead so a bruise would be left in its wake. "Call me soft again an' I'll fuck ya up. Just 'cause I won't kill ya don't mean I won't beat the livin' shit outta ya."

"R—right…thanks Boss," Matt stuttered, rubbing the sore spot starting to sprout on his skin. "I'll remember that, but…but there's still time to replace a _lookout_, right?" He asked, directing his glare towards Scotty.

Kidd smirked deviously, propping his elbow up on the table so he could rest his chin in the palm of his hand. "Yup," he answered shortly.

Scotty knew where this was heading and he grabbed his shot glass, gulping down the remaining liquor in it before he stood up. "Well gents, see ya at the ship," and then he booked it like a bat fresh out of hell.

"Capt'n," Matt looked to Kidd. "Can I borrow your gun?"

Kidd stared at him for a second, but then he chuckled shortly with grin as he tossed his revolver to his treasurer. "Knock yourself out."

"Heh, thanks," Matt smirked devilishly, cocking the weapon as he made a mad dash after the lookout. Moments later, the sound of gunfire could be heard in the background.

"Err…" Killer spoke up, staring at open doorway. "You think Matt will really kill him this time?"

"Doubt it," Kidd huffed as he took off one of the many gold bands around his wrist. "Matt's tried ta kill Scotty a million times before," then he grabbed his little pup, muttering _hold still _under his breath before talking again. "So there's no way he'll kill him this time," he paused. "I think. Or else we have ta get a new lookout, really," he shook his head of the thought and went back to his pup and gingerly placed the bracelet around Bella's neck just above the metallic collar that shocked her into submission, marking her as his. "There, now she's a true _blue _member of the crew," Kidd barked shortly with laughter.

Killer groaned, rolling his eyes at the terrible pun, but then his attention snapped away to the door when he saw that the pup started to freak out, barking wildly. And looking up, there was a special guest that walked right in. "We have company," he casually warned Kidd.

Kidd looked away from the yapping pup and to the door, smirking wildly at the sight of the mysterious masked man that wanted to get Bella back. "Look what the cat dragged in," he chuckled crudely as the masked man stormed over to his table in a fit of rage.

"_You have someone of mine,_" was all he said in that smoker cough voice of his.

"Yours?" Kidd nearly laughed. "It ain't yours anymore, buddy. I bought and paid for this little gal," he said, patting the eager puppy on the head. "She's _mine_ now."

The masked man said nothing and remained still, but then in a flash he darted forward trying to snatch the pup under Kidd's nose. But Kidd was just as fast.

In an instant, his dagger was out and ready to strike like a viper, but instead of digging into the flesh of the fool, it only sank into the thick wood of the table. "Heh," he chuckled dryly with a grin, pulling the dagger out from the table. "Nice reflexes, bitch."

The masked man growled, his hand flipping back part of his robe so that he could pull out a small rod, but then with a flick his wrist, that little rod turned into a staff, a metal one.

Kidd laughed evilly at the sight. "Stupid choice," he bluntly stated, his arms sparking with the purple pulse of his magnetic devil fruit powers.

"_It's Seastone,_" the masked man countered. "_I've fought enough devil fruits to know how it works._"

Kidd sneered at him, growling angrily at the masked man. "Bitch," he hissed, snatching up the pup up from the table and tossed her to Killer. "But don't matter; I'll still kill ya," and he flipped the table out of his way, making all the empty glasses crash to the floor.

Those around the tavern didn't let the start of a bar fight go unnoticed and they started to circle the infamous pirate captain and scrawny masked man that dared challenge over a…dog. Granted, most of the people in there were too drunk to know the details and just cheered the fight out because they wanted action.

Expertly twirling the dagger between his fingers, Kidd examined his opponent. Sturdy with only a staff to protect him; Kidd's dagger may have been small, but he knew how to use it. And apparently his opponent knew how to disarm with that staff of his. Using it as an extension of his arm, the masked man whacked his wrist and caused Kidd to loose his grip, the small dagger flying away from his finger and through the air until it stopped at the wall, nearly nicking the top of some drunk's head.

The crowd _ooh-ed_ at the sneak attack that made the pirate captain freeze momentarily, but then Kidd bared his teeth like a savage animal at them, sending them a warning. Then with a deep growl from the pits of his throat, he slowly looked back to the masked man. Words could not describe how he felt; _no one_ made him look like a fool in front of anybody. And with a battle cry, Kidd charged.

Despite his hefty form, Kidd was quick and reached out to choke that scrawny little neck of that masked man, but the staff was about to make a blow to his skull. Kidd's hand latched onto the incoming blunt weapon, feeling the tiny sting from the force, but he ignored it. He jerked his opponent's staff forward, and expected the masked man didn't let go, but Kidd used his head, literally. When in range, he head butted the masked man, his goggled protecting his forehead from the recall of the mask.

The masked man yelped, and Kidd froze when he heard the uncharacteristically…high-pitched tone that came from a man. But then he mentally shook it off and used this moment of opportunity to sucker punch the masked man in the gut.

The masked man staggered backwards, holding his gut with a deep throated groan, and Kidd knew this was the end.

Kidd lands the final hit the masked man back with a fatal punch to the cheek, sending the man back into a table which splintered the wood. The masked man laid there, groaning deeply in that oddly higher pitched voice. Kidd just scoffed and walked forward, the cheering of his crew and other drunken patrons egging him on. The fight was easy, the masked man only landing a small hit to his palm, but that was on purpose and nothing strong enough to leave a bruise.

"Don't pick a bar fight with me," Kidd sneered and then rammed his heel into the masked face of the man. Under the pressure of his foot, there was a heavy cracking sound, the sound of stone break and Kidd knew he just split the mask in two. He smirked and bent down, grabbing the scruff of the man's robes. "And finally get to put a face that pussy-cough voice of yo—" He stopped when he saw the face.

The hood of the man slipped off his head when jerked to his feet and there was short, chopped navy blue hair that matched Bella's fur coat and a lighter shade of blue for his skin. Kidd blinked in shock, his jaw gapping open as he stared at sharp orange eyes that looked in pain. The appearance of the mysterious man was surprising and a little out of the normal unless his home was Fish Island, but that seemed unlikely since there were no gills.

But that wasn't the biggest shock.

No, the biggest shock was the fact that the mysterious man wasn't a _he_, but rather a _she_.

He was a woman.


	3. Chapter 3

Son of Whitebeard: I'm going for a twisty story, so that's good you thought that.

Alpenwolf: Maybe the real Kuma would be shocked, but he would probably hide it well; he has an emotionless look all the time to me...and I bet you'll never guess her race. xD

reighnstorm: Thank you and you're welcome.

Sorry for grammar mistakes.

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, only OC.

* * *

Chapter 3

Kidd blinked, feeling rather baffled. "What the fuck?" was all he could say through the silence of every man watching in the bar at that moment.

The silence continued, no one moving a step until Killer left the shadows, dropping Bella in the hands of Heat before he barked at the crew to get moving. They couldn't stay long on Shabondy anyway due to heightened Marine activity; there were rumors that an Admiral was running around and the Kidd Pirates narrowly escaped a battle with a semi-fake Pirate Warlord. They didn't need to get mixed up in more trouble.

When the bar was cleared both of pirates and local patrons, Killer left everything in the trustworthy hands of Heat. Then the first-mate took his post at the doorway, leaning against the frame as his captain continued to ogle at the woman, or at least that is how Killer saw it in his eyes.

Kidd would have disagreed with his first-mate's choice of words to describe his stare; if anything he was confused.

He was very, oh so very confused.

Firstly, he was confused by the odd appearance of the woman, being blue skinned and having no qualities that labeled her a local from Fishmen Island. But what really threw him for a loop was finding out the woman was actually a fucking woman.

He thought the woman was a man based on outer appearance and the rough voice muffed by the mask, but it seems he, and a lot of other people, were blatantly wrong about the gender. Now that the mask was gone, Kidd could see the soft edges along the jaw, the fullness of her cheek that had the tininess tint of pink caused from their tussle. And then there was the gentleness to the eyes; a look that only a true-blue, no pun intended, female could pull off; it was meant to make men melt.

Kidd, though, wasn't melting into a pile of mush at the sight of an exotic looking woman. No, he just had a damn blank mind about the situation. How was he supposed to go a bout this situation? Was he supposed to figure out the exact gender, or something? Fuck that; there was only one way to check and Kidd sure a hell wasn't going to check in a bar.

He mentally shook his thoughts from his mind; girl or boy, this fucker was strong, or at least clever. Extremely stupid to pick a fight with him, but clever none the less; the disarming skill was good. Kidd liked it when a fool had guts and could handle themselves pretty good in a fight.

Really though, neither of them was ready for that fight. Kidd himself had taken a toll from Kuma and was not on his A game and the woman, well, it could either be because of all the battles that went on today or the fact that she was a woman that caused her to lose. But either way, Kidd saw something in this chick.

"Ya lost," Kidd finally spoke, shaking the woman so she would look him in the eye.

"I may have lost the battle," she rasped, her voice so coarse, as if she had sandpaper for a throat. "But I have not lost the war."

"Hmm," Kidd hummed in thought. "We could fight again, but no way you can win."

"That is only what you think," she scowled at him darkly, trying to pry his fingers away from his shirt. "You must not know a woman's determination."

Kidd chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. "Over a fucking mutt, really now? That's pathetic."

"She may just be a _mutt_ in your eyes, but she it more than that! More than a tool of war!" She barked bitterly, flailing her legs a bout wildly as her nail dug into the skin of his arm. "And if I must fight for her freedom then I will!"

Kidd threw back his head and let out a short laugh. "Why fight when I can just give'er to ya?"

The woman's head jerked back in shock, her orange eyes opening wide. "Y—you would give her back to me? Just like that?"

"Well," Kidd clicked his tongue and he rolled his broad shoulders. "You have to give me somethin' in return," he elaborated with a sly smirk.

The stunned look in her eyes turned back to an icy glare. "What is it that you want?"

Kidd grinned evilly. "Your loyalty."

"_Never_," she hissed murderously. "I will never join your crew and neither will Bella! If I said it once, I'll say it again: I am ready to fight for her freedom!"

"You sure ya _really_ wanna do that?" Kidd inquired curiously. "It'd be a hell-a-lot easier if you just joined me."

"But then no one if free," she replied coldly.

"And it's hard to be free if people are dead, eh?" Kidd countered coyly, making the woman clench her teeth with rage. "Fight me after I try an' be nice an' you won't make it to see mornin'."

The woman went silent, her lips pressed in a thin line of thought. She closed her eyes, her grip tightening around his wrist and Kidd could just hear the gears whirling inside her mind, picking it to the bone of all the pros and cons of his proposal. But then she sighed and hung her head low. "Fine," she finally answered with defeat.

"Good," Kidd purred with a grin. "That's what I like ta hear."

But then the woman's head snapped up, her eyes firm with seriousness. "But only under one condition."

"You ain't in condition to be makin' terms," Kidd pointed out coldly.

"Do you want my loyalty or not?" She questioned him.

Kidd scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Fine. What is it?"

* * *

"So…" Matt slowly started the awkward conversation as he sat on a crate across from the woman balancing herself on one of the hammocks in the crew's quarters under deck. "You're a girl that masqueraded as a guy…"

She looked up at him, her thin brow rising slightly. "I didn't masqueraded as a man," she replied calmly as she held little Bella in her lap. "People just thought I was a man because of my clothing and mask."

"Huh, I guess that makes sense…" Matt mumbled as he rubbed his chin. "You did have a nasty tone of voice with that mask on and it's lighter now that it's gone, but still; did you used to smoke before?"

She looked away sharply, a cold glare clouding her features. "_No,_" she answered tightly.

Matt eyed her curiously and tilted his head to the side, examining her stiff form, but then he shrugged it off as nothing. "Whatever you say," he responded. "But anyway, Capt'n told me to watch over you while you rest since I'm sure you know what the men'll do if they knew a vulnerable woman is down here alone."

"And you're different?" She asked him shortly.

Matt threw back his head and let out a laugh. "Nope, I'm not any different then my mates and I'm sure I could easily overpower you right now. I have been a bit frustrated since Shabondy was too quick of a stop...but I have respect for Capt'n unlike other lower dogs here. I won't disobey his orders," he said, but then he looked at her with a devious smirk crossing his lips. "But I'll try if I know I won't get caught."

"Charming to know," she remarked dryly.

Matt was lightly taken back by her words and lack of emotion. "Well, you just better watch out; if something happens then it's your fault since I _did_ warn you," and then he stood up with a grunt. "And if I was you, I may want to rethink not paying a visit to Doc; he can be a dick sometimes, but you'll probably be saver in his hands than mine."

"I'll keep that in mind," she answered as she watched him leave, chuckling crudely as he closed the hatch that led topside behind him. She just sighed and shook her head then looked down at Bella. "If I didn't have you by my side then I would be worried," she whispered to her little pup. "But since I got that brute Eustass to remove your collar, you can defend me like before, right girl?"

Bella barked happily, her pink tongue rolling out as she wagged her little tail eagerly for a fight.

She petted her friend on the head scratching behind the ears, just how Bella liked it. "Now we can use this to our advantage, maybe. If we can sail long enough with Eustass and his crew to find the Cure then we can go home…" the key word made her trail off, looking sadly off into the far distance of her memory. "Home…"

Bella whined sadly, her ears dropping as she hopped up to place a comforting lick to her master's cheek, but it was ignored.

"If there is even a home left for us to return to…" she added on, but quickly shook the thoughts from her mind and changed the subject. "We should get rest, we had a long day," and then she looked to her bag and dug through the small amount of objects within and pulled out a single vile of pills. She shook the container, making the few white tablets jump against the thick glass walls and she frowned at the sight.

Only a few more days worth and then it would all be gone and if she ran out of medicine. She had other means to delay the disease, but these pills were the strongest and most effective, she knew since she did help create them. But the ingredients would be impossible to fine since…since…

She shoved the thought violently to the pits of her mind and quickly uncorked the glass vile and shook two pills into the palm of her hand before gulping them down.

The tasteless medicine traveled down her throat and then she placed the bottle back in her bag before lying down to get some sleep with Bella curled up at her side.

* * *

The crackling sound lead ramming into steel and brick made he rise with a startle, thinking that the ship was under attack. She darted from her hammock, making Bella plop to the floor in the process. The pup yelped in surprise, but she paid no attention to Bella and focused on the porthole that gave off a vicious orange light.

Fire burned brightly in the distance, the far distance, but the screams of battle seemed so close. She didn't know where they were and who was fighting whom, but one glimpse to the sky, she saw the tattered war-torn flag of the Marines, but also World Government: it was Marine Ford. This must have been the start or finishing acts of the war against Whitebeard; she had read that in the paper when it said that they were going to execute Fire Fist Ace.

But what was Eustass doing here? Was he going to join the battle, was he fleeing it? She wanted to know the answers since she was bound to get wound up in the fight, but just as she turned to head to the hatch that went to the deck, it opened.

Matt stomped down the steps, but then he stopped midway when he saw she was already up and out of bed.

"What's going on?" She was the first to question him when she saw him open his mouth to give her orders.

"Capt'n wanted to see the War," Matt replied casually, as if it was nothing. "He got tired of it so we're leaving now. He ordered me to check up on you and tell you to get ready."

She blinked in confusion. "Ready for what?" She asked slowly.

Matt grinned evilly ear to ear, his face becoming shadowed by the bight light hitting his back so his pearly whites and beady eyes looked more sinister. "You'll see soon enough," was all he said with a chuckle before retreated back to deck, slamming the hatch behind him.

A chill ran down her spine and she shuttered and what the words could imply, and for the Kidd Pirates' reputation, she could only image the worse.

* * *

Two hours of pacing back and forth and she had no idea what was going on. She tried to leave the crew's quarters, but as she started to open the hatch, the heel of Matt came crashing down on it followed by the jeering of those behind him. He said the little blue princess of the ship had to wait until '_Capt'n_' let her out of time out. When her rest time had switched over to jail time must have flew over her head because last time she checked she did nothing wrong to be punished in the first place.

It just showed how twisted Eustass Kidd was, or stupid. Or maybe…even clever? She didn't know much of the man besides the fact that he was infamous for red rage and bloody violence to anyone that looked or crossed him the wrong way. He wasn't considered a Supernova for nothing; he earned that title through terror.

So, it would be stupid of her to deny that she wasn't worrying what the red head in mind; she had been for two hours now.

But her time to wait and worry was over.

The hatch to the crew's quarters flew open and the calm clicks of heels followed. It wasn't Matt this time, but rather the two men in charge behind the captain himself: Killer and Heat. They said not a word as they stalked over to her, Killer snatching a hand full of her collar to drag her away and Heat hesitantly picking up Bella from her spot as she barked at them angrily.

The two paid no attention to the dog and merely did their obvious task of taking them topside where the entire crew stood, waiting. Among them was the captain, the muscular man leaning over to rest his forearms on the railing as he examined the mountainous rock formation known as the Red Line. They were only minutes away from the New World, and here they sat doing nothing. She thought Eustass would be eager to scramble to the other side to continue his wave of terror, but it seems he had patience to pick out important issues. Those issues clearly involving her because he bluntly stated it.

"The mutt's proven herself an asset to the crew," he started, never looking away from the scenery of stray Red Line boulders bobbing in the eerie waves of night. "But you haven't."

The words seemed to be implied order she did not get since she found herself being jerked back and then forward again quickly, the force so strong that when Killer let his grip slip from her collar, she went flying towards the hazardous rocks. But then in an instant, Bella was kicking her tiny legs wildly and was able to escape Heat's grip as her body rippled into large, tight muscles and she leaped over the railing in a mere heartbeat in her werewolf form.

The gold band that Eustass had put on her that night at the bar was still there, expanding to fit the new neck of Bella's werewolf form and her master used that to her advantage. Her hand gripped onto the gold collar and she swung her legs around to couch against Bella's broad back as the werewolf latched onto a boulder's rough surface with her razor claws.

Kidd's bellow could be heard loud and clear as he watched with much amusement. He cradled his chin with a hand, using the railing of his ship to prop up his elbow, and a large smirk spread out long and wide. But he said nothing about her soar through the air, how Bella was so quick to react when her master was in trouble. He only said one thing; two simple words. "Heat, Jacques."

The two named men stepped forward, jumping from over the railing and leaping onto the many points of boulder tips around them.

She recognized the skeletal face of Heat with his shallow eyes and grizzle light blue hair and reddish skin covered with thorn tattoos the color of fresh blood, but the second she never saw before. He was an elegant looking man, far too gentleman-like to be apart of the Kidd Pirate crew, but looks could be deceiving; she found that out the hard way. But that wasn't the point, she had to clear her mind of the past and keep it into the present.

She was about to fight; it must have been the Kidd Pirate way to see if one was an asset or not.

Jacques then something she didn't understand since it was in French. He smiled at her sincerely, an apologetic looking expression on his face as he pulled little wood barrels off of the many belts and chest straps adoring his lean frame.

Heat glanced at him from the corner of his eyes. "Don't let her distract you, Jacques. We have a job to do."

Jacques replied swiftly in his native language, waving a hand holding a tiny barrel towards the second mate. Then Jacques flicked the mini-barrels away, one after another, the projectiles zipping through the air like bullets and they clung to the rock structures like glue. She had found it curious since there was no logical way that could be unless there was something on the barrels that made them stick, yet Jacques had no problem throwing them.

Through her wonder, she didn't think about what the barrels were even for, or that Heat was going to attack. The second mate leaned back gracefully as he couched at the sharp tip of his boulder, and then he swiftly moved forward again, jaw opened wide to let flames escape his throat as if he were a dragon.

Her eyes opened wide and she jerked on Bella's collar to make the werewolf move, but it was too late. The mini-barrels were more than what they seemed: they were bombs.

It was a chain reaction, one bomb going off after another to cause fire, and smoke, so much smoke.

She choked as it filled her lungs, burning her throat as if it were an inferno. She couldn't breath, her limbs grew weak and she slipped from Bella's back; she could do nothing by cough to dispel the foul smog from her body. With a rough landing, she crashed to rocky surface below her with a sickening thud that rang in her ears. She could barely see, only the haze surrounding the rocks from the bombs, the burly form of Bella as the werewolf came to her side, nudging her side with her large canine nose.

And through the mist, she saw Eustass, disappointing frown on his lips as he shook his head at the sight.

She failed his test, and now only the true worst could come.


	4. Chapter 4

Alpenwolf: This chapter somewhat hints to what her race is, if you can catch it. It's cannon...ish

**Fair Warning: I'm trying to make a 'darker' story. Plus there is a bit of a mature thing here, but I'm keeping it mild due to rating; you'll see what I mean. But anyway, I'm not very good at dark things, I feel, so I'm trying to go outside my box of comfort to write something different. I'm using this story as a test, so please tell me if it's a good start or just plain wrong. Suggestions on how to make it better will also help. Please and Thank you.**

Sorry for grammar mistakes.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything One Piece, but plot and OCs are mine.

* * *

Chapter 4

Kidd shook his head with a sigh at the sight, disappointed. "Didn't last long, did she," he commented, glancing to Killer at his side.

"Want to leave her here then?" Killer suggested questionably. "We can take Bella with us and put that slave collar back on so she doesn't go berserk."

Kidd thought a moment over the idea; it was a good plan, but he had a better one. He smirked at his own growing plan, which he deemed could solve one of two problems for him, or his crew. "Nah, I have a better idea," he finally spoke then he turned to Heat and Jacques, the two men still balancing on the rocks besides the Red Line. "_Hull their asses up 'ere!_" He barked the order to them, waving a hand wildly to the deck emphasize it.

Jacques shouted proudly in French, puffing out his chest and saluted to his captain's order, readying himself to take a swan dive into the ocean for a pretty lady.

"_Not you Jacques!_" Kidd shouted angrily, eating his own words. "_Ya'll get all your gun powder wet, god damnit!_"

Jacques grumbled bitterly in his native tongue, crouching down in his spot as he crossed his arms over his chest.

On the other hand, Heat sighed deeply, hanging his head slightly. "Looks like I'm the one that'll have to take a swim," he grimly said as he got ready for his plunge into chilly sea.

But the second mate did not have to move an inch for Bella took up the responsibility of bringing her master to safety. With one large leap, the werewolf landed gracefully to the deck while holding the weaken woman in her a furry, muscular arms. Bella refused to give her up to anyone, growling with teeth bared viciously whenever anyone tried to get close, especially when Doc tried to do his job. Everyone stayed clear, giving the beast space, except forone man that wasn't intimidated like the others.

Kidd stepped forward, grinning wickedly as the werewolf shuffled back with curled lips, warning the captain to back off. Kidd did no such thing. "If ya don't want to give her up then follow me," Kidd offered the werewolf.

Bella growled in response, holding her master closer to her chest for protection.

"She doesn't look too good," Kidd brought up casually. "_'_Course you can take her below deck, but I can't grantee her safety…right men?"

The jeers, snickers and wolf whistles told the implied meanings.

Bella was not happy with the thought, and she showed by barking furiously in the captain's face, but when a blue hand touched her chest, the werewolf stopped and agreed to follow. The heavy paws of the werewolf hesitantly trailed after him as Kidd walked to his room, and once there, Bella stood stiffly, still snarling at him.

"I wanna help her," Kidd told the werewolf, but Bella sniffed out the lie and she sneered. Rolling his eyes, Kidd scoffed. "Just put her on the bed an' go back to being a little pup again. Got it?"

A deadly growl rose from Bella's throat and she resisted the idea of leaving her master's side in a vulnerable state; it would never happen. But the woman weakly whispered something to the werewolf, something Kidd could not fully hear, but it had the affects he wanted. Bella grudgingly did as the captain wanted and stalked over, lying her master gingerly upon the bed. Then continuing with orders, the werewolf went back to being just a small pup again and sat in the middle of the floor, stiff as stone.

But then in one swift move, Kidd snatched up the pup and then with a _click_, the collar was back around her tiny neck. The pup yelped and struggled against his iron grip, but failed to make any attempts for an escape.

"Y—you said you wouldn't put the collar back on…" the woman wheezed from the bed, forcing a glare towards the captain.

Kidd's lips spread into a sly smirk, and he chuckled darkly. "I said I'd take it off; never said I won't put it back on," he replied as he took slow steps to the bed side.

"You tricked me!" She barked, her voice full of bitterness, but the rise in tone made her almost cough out a lung.

"Heh," Kidd grunted, leaning over the bedside to stare her straight in eyes. "I'm a pirate, what'd ya expect, huh? That I'd _actually_ keep my word? Fuck no."

She scowled at him darkly as her shoulders shuttered with each labored breath; she looked pitiful. And vulnerable, extremely vulnerable.

"Awe, don't give me a look like that; don't suit your pretty face," he mocked as he gingerly placed a hand to her neck, his fingers tips brushing against a rapid pulse. "And you disappointed me back there. Thought you would've lasted. You held out pretty good at the bar…"

"And what does that say about you," she coldly remarked.

Finger nails dug into her skin viciously as his brow knotted together with rage. "Really smart ta say that," He sarcastically spat, watching her squirm as his palm cut of air quickly.

Flailing her legs, she kicked up the sheets as she tried to pry his hand away. She whimpered and yelped, struggling as her pulse grew frantic against his palm and her breath sharpened, making her chest take quickly leaps up and down.

He enjoyed watching her suffer, seeing her life titter on the fence, completely under his control. Taking her down would be simple, just a bit more pressure and her neck would snap like a twig. The stray he picked up would be out of his way, yet, he wasn't going to kill her. Maybe. She had some uses still; he just needed to draw them out for either his sake or his crews.

Releasing, his stone-cold grip, he pulled back, watching her gasp for air. "I'll be back later. I ain't done, yet. And to make sure there's no funny business, I'm takin' this one with me," and he waved the shivering pup by the replaced slave collar in the air. "Doubt she'll do anything. She's been trained well unlike _someone_, but think I'll change that," he sneered and then left the room with a laugh.

* * *

Her bare feet curled against the sheets as she sat with knees against her chest. She didn't like this; she didn't like this at all.

The room was pitch blank, almost dark as night due to the water of the Grand Line passing by the porthole. There was little light; only that coming from under the door and it was enough to create shadows for the large fishes that dwelled in the deepest parts of the sea. The ship was traveling under the Red Line now; the bubble coating shielded it and the crew as they went deeper.

It could have been considered a beautiful sight, but she found that appreciating it was difficult. She was still weak from the smoke; she could just feel the smog clinging to her lungs and throat like a deadly parasite. She needed her medicine, badly, but all her belongs were stuck in the crew's quarters and she didn't have the strength to move. Plus, even if could move, she wouldn't want to travel there alone after that blatant threat of rape.

She felt like she was stuck between a rock and a hard place; sick and no way to get her pills without getting caught up with a crew given permission to do _anything _and on the other hand, she was defenseless in the room of a violent pirate that could do _anything_ to her.

Hopefully, the bubble coating would pop and everyone died before _any _of that happened. She'd rather die than be caught in the claws of Eustass or his crew; she didn't have much time left anyway.

Then the creaking of the door snapped her attention to the shadowed figure stalk into the darkness of the room. The light from the lanterns in the hall behind him made his coat-bulky form look like a devilish, and he was infamously known for being one.

But he ignored her and simply shut the door behind him, locking it was a _click_ and then walked toward his desk, mumbling curses as he looked through the contents of the drawers. The slap of wood signaled he found want he wanted and the scrap of a match against the side of its box caused light to flood the room. It was tiny, but enough for a person to see as he lit a candle on his desk and then walked over to the bedside, lighting another one the nightstand.

"Can you stand?" He finally spoke, questioning her as he shook his hand to snuff the match's flame.

"Not really…" she answered slowly, keeping her expression neutral to his presence.

"Hmph," Eustass grunted, rolling his eyes. "You sound like shit."

Inside, she scowled at him, but on the outside she remained firm. "Well, something like that will happen when one inhales toxic smoke from a bomb. Though, it can't be my fault, now really," she dryly said, her eyes holding an emotionless glaze.

Eustass scowled at her, grumbling under his breath as he roughly grabbed onto her arm and hoisted her up and off the bed to her feet. Then dragging her, he shoved her to the desk.

She inhaled sharply as she latched onto the desk's edge to balance herself. Then she turned around, watching Eustass pace back and forth before her, inspecting her in a way she found uncomfortable. Still, she didn't let the emotion show; he wouldn't have a hold on her, or let him feel like he did.

His eyes glazed over her like she was nothing more than a piece of meat in a butcher shop, just ready for the picking. His lips curled into a grin that showed his teeth gleaming wickedly in the soft candle light and his amber eyes gleaming red, with devious intentions that he held no shame in revealing. "Did a poor job," he tsked smugly as he shook his head. "Like I said before: you disappointed me, _greatly_."

"And what will you do now?" She asked, steeling herself for the worse. "Lock me up, send me overboard, or maybe just kill me?"

"All tempting ideas," he nodded thoughtfully. "But, I've a…_better_ idea," and he stopped pacing and stood before her, his tall form's shadow looming like a suffocating blanket over her. "I wanna _see_ if you're worth it," he sneered, leaning in close.

She froze, her body going rigid and Eustass noticed. She wasn't stupid, she knew what he wanted. Breaking her neutral state, she scowled and she growled: "_Never._"

Eustass laughed, taking it as a challenge. "Well, you've only two choices 'ere, sweetheart: either the crew's bitch or captain's whore. Take your pick."

"I'd like to make a third option and say you just kill me now," she countered with a cold look swimming in her orange eyes. "Because the two you have given aren't my taste."

"I'll consider it," Eustass bluntly told her. "But first I wanna see if you're worth it. Com'on, get to movin'."

She shifted uncomfortably on her feet, glancing away to avoid his stare. There was that feeling of being in a rock and a hard place again. Being stubborn was the smart choice here, but she felt Eustass was just as stubborn, and a man that got what he wanted by any means. "Must I?" She mumbled softly.

"I can do it for ya," Eustass suggested and moved closer, hands on her shoulder and he started to remove the thick brown jacket resting there. "I'll enjoy it."

Her mind screamed at her to make a break for it, dash for the door and hide in a corner and hope Eustass wouldn't sniff her out. But her body screamed another, and it had nothing to agree what Eustass asked of her. She was weak, the smoke still having such a toll on her body like it had always in the past. There was no strength in her bones to push him away as he swiped the jacket from her shoulders, letting it fall to the ground in a heap.

It was no lie when Eustass said he'd enjoy it; the grin on his face and the look in his beady eyes told her that much. And he just continued to push farther beyond the point that was already too far.

A chuckle rumbled in his throat, he flicked out his dagger from it sheath and with a free hand, his finger hooked into the collar of her shirt and tugged. Then he sliced the front of her shirt, as if it were casual he'd do such a thing.

Gasping, she tried to pull back when his fingers tugged against the tattered shirt. He couldn't see _that_.

Eustass eyed her curiously, his brow rising. "Trying to hide somethin', specially with all them bandages around your chest?" He mocked tauntingly and more forcibly pulled the remains of her shirt away. And when the limp fabric touched the ground, Kidd stared at her. "Fuck; are those…_wings?_" he questioned, eyes wide as he saw the tiny, feathered appendages folded out from resting against her shoulder blades. Then his fingers gently took the tip of the tiny wing and pulled, curious.

"_Tch_," she tsked, her eyes squinting in pain as she flinched.

Eustass blinked at her reaction. "That hurt, _Angel?_" He asked with the beginnings of a smirk curling at the corner of his lips, and he then tugged her wing again.

"Don't call me that," She cringed then turned sharply so her wing slipped from his grasp and then she hugged her arms tightly. "And of course it hurts! They aren't accessories! They are apart of me!"

Eustass merely smirked. "Heh, _Angel_," he rolled the name around on his tongue. "I like it, good little nick-name; count on it that I'll call ya that. Plus, it looks like it'll ruffle them feathers of yours," he laughed coyly.

She turned her gaze away to avoid his smug stare, and ignore his shitty pun, but then she felt cold fingers brush over the skin of her collarbone. On instinct, she swatted his wandering hand away that tried to remove the bandages around her chest.

"Now, now, Angel," he tsked, waving his finger in front of her face mocking. "Let's not get difficult and just—" he paused and swiftly fisted the bandages with both hands and ripped them from her body. "—_relax_."

She yelped in a high pitched tone and covered her exposed chest from his eyes as a crimson blush crossed her cheeks.

Eustass's hands locked around her wrists and jerked her arms away to reveal her breasts. Hungrily, his eyes gazed over her like he was a predator eyeing its next meal from the brush. "_Mm-hmm…_" he hummed with a sly smirk, his eyes growing with an eager glimmer. "Bigger than I thought. Yeah, you're startin' out to be worth it, _but.._."

She gulped at his face became inches from hers, their noses barely touching, and she shifted nervously, and knowingly. He wouldn't stop, she knew he wouldn't from the start, but she had the little bit of hope that he would stop, but he shred that to pieces as he leaned in close to her ear and placed his hands on her hips, fingers slipping into the waistbands of her pants.

"Let's see the next half, eh?" He whispered huskily, his breath hot on her flesh. "And then let's do a second run test of proving yourself…"

She shuttered as she felt his teeth roughly bite into the lobe of her ear, and the action made her struggle, hands to his chest to push him away. He was like a statue with a deviously sly aura that made her whimper when she couldn't escape him taking the last bit of dignity she had left as the rest of her clothing fell to her ankles.


	5. Chapter 5

**I think the 'name' of my OC as confused people. Angel is a nick-name, but it doesn't mean she _is_ an angel. I was planning on explaining it in later chapters, but since I don't want you all to be confused, I'm explaining it here. I passed the explanation over to my beta, and she said it was sound, so I hope it all makes sense in the end. Also, slight warning. This has a mature theme to it, as in a****'sex scene'. I kept it vague because I wanted to make sure I didn't cross the border for T, but if you all think it should be M, then I'll be happy to change it. And if behaviors in this chapter seem odd, remember I have a method to my madness. It will all be explained over time.**

Alpenwolf: The blue skin is the non-cannon part of her, the wings are the cannon part.

Eri: Don't be too quick to judge based on appearance, remember this is One Piece and there's a lot of crazy stuff in there. But who knows, maybe my OC will turn in a Mary-sue, but I'll try hard to make sure she doesn't.

fangir-4-evEr-xx: Thank you for liking the plot, I worked hard on it to make sure it was good. :)

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, but OCs are mine.

* * *

Chapter 5

She struggled; she was trapped, but she struggled. She refused to give herself up like this. She was trapped and striped down when she was weak, but she mustered what strength she got from adrenaline, and maybe even fear. She knew it was pointless to fight; he would get what he wanted in the end. She accepted that bitter fate, but still, she wasn't about to let him have her like this so easily.

She rolled back and forth so his hands would slip from her bare skin and she kicked her legs a bout wildly so the sheets got tangled between them, making it difficult. But Eustass enjoyed the challenge. He laughed and smirked, amused.

Before his hands slipped away, his fingernails dug into her blue skin to leave red marks and his teeth would sink quickly into the skin of her neck and shoulder; he was marking her as his territory. But then he stopped playing game and leaned over her, grabbing her flailing wrists to pin her down against the sheets. He almost had her, but his focus was on her wrists against the pillowcase and not to the heel of her foot squarely nailing him in the gut.

A sharp exhale of air slipped passed his lips, his eyes opening a slight fraction in shock. He started to groan, releasing his grip on her to place a hand to the sore spot at his stomach, but then he shook it off and growled when she tried to roll off the bed to escape. He slapped a hand to her side, finger nails clawing the skin of her stomach and rolled her to the middle of the bed, making her lay sprawled out on her back as her face became smothered to pillow.

Pinning her wrists to the sheets again, he dipped down to her neck, hissing warnings in her ear. Snarled that she couldn't get away that easily, and if she wanted to get away then she had to spread her wings and fly. How tempting the idea was, but her wings could never carry her. They may be apart of her and could cause pain, but they truthfully acted as nothing more than an accessory.

He whispered more taunts in her ear as his iron grip tighten on her wrist, nails biting into her flesh. His chest pressed firmly to her back, making her wing twitch as they were sandwiched between them, and she felt his sinful arousal press against her uncomfortable.

Then he showed her no mercy, and there was only pain.

She screamed into pillow and her fingers shook as they clutched the sheets at the act that should have been for love and been pleasurable, but it was full of agony that she wished would end.

He dragged it out to his heart's content. Hard and slow, all to heighten the pain to his amusement; he told her that message loud and clear into her ear, chuckling with dark humor as he said the harsh words.

Then the sickening feeling as he came within her made cringe, his deep breathy groan rushed into her ear and he collapsed upon her with his full weight in exhaustion, crushing her. And then he had the audacity to snake his arms under her and snuggle up close to her, like a lover would do, a possessive one, that is. He could fall asleep peacefully after what he did, snoring gently against her ear as if nothing had happened.

She couldn't have the pleasure of sleep though. Her body felt on fire, both inside and out. She lied there, shaking and wide awake, feeling stupid.

This all went back to the past. If she hadn't been so careless and gotten Bella captured by slavers then neither of them would have been in this mess. Bella wouldn't be scared to death that the collar around her little neck would either explode or shock her violently, and she, herself, wouldn't be naked between a man that forced himself on her and the bed where the act came to be.

The time slowly ticked away, the dark lingering there here even as the ship felt like it was traveling upwards. It was night, and they were no longer under the Red Line and were now officially in the New World, the waters of her home. But she knew she wouldn't be going home anytime soon. She needed that Cure, even if she was only running on a small bit of information that had a chance of being false. It was all she had.

Then the thoughts of…_him_ came to mind and she pushed that aside. She would leave it with only the Cure and the lead; nothing more. To focus on something else, she looked to the porthole, seeing the stars lighting the room since the candles were snuffed out by wax hours ago.

Eustass then stirred and he slowly woke. Grumbling, he moved from her back onto his stomach and his hand slapped onto the nightstand. The sound of the drawer sliding entered her ears as she watched his shoulder shuttering as he looked for what he wanted. There was a slap and then Eustass rolled over onto his back with lighter and cigarette in hand.

With only a thumb, he flicked open the lighter and then turned on the flame, the area flooding with dim light. He placed the butt of the cigarette between his teeth, and with a small glance to the side, he noticed her. "Still awake?"

She was silent, like a deer in headlights. After what happened, she didn't want to have small talk.

Eustass rolled his eyes and went on to light his cancer stick and the room was instantly filled with the smell of nicotine, and smoke.

She scrunched her nose at the smell and the small billow of wispy smoke that invaded her nose and mouth, and she started to cough as the smoke pierced her lungs. "Don't…" she rasped, hand over her mouth and nose to muffle the stench and block the toxins.

Eustass glanced at her oddly as he propped up on his elbows. Then he smirked at her as he took a long drag and purposely blew the smoke in her face, making her wheeze and rasp for air even more.

She coughed harshly, trying to swat the toxins from her presences, but to no prevail. So, smothering her face to the pillow, she tried to drown out the smoke, and maybe even Eustass's laughter. Then there was silence for a long moment, but the captain spoke to break it.

"Hey, Angel," he called that mocking nick-name and nudged her in the shoulder with an elbow to grab her attention once more. "Why're your wings so small, how can ya even fly?"

She slowly turned her head, looking at him with one eye then mumbled to see that the cigarette was gone, but the lingering smell and smoke was still there, and it made her want to look back to the pillow. Though, Eustass's growing look of annoyance told her to speak up: "That's because I _can't_ fly."

Eustass looked at her as if she was stupid. "Then what's the fuckin' point of having 'em?"

"I don't know," she shrugged. "I was born with them, just as the rest of my tribe at home."

Eustass's eyes opened a slight fraction, a shocked emotion held in the amber irises. "There's _more_ of you?" He asked curiously. "Where the hell are ya from?"

"Of course there is more of my kind. We are all from a Sky Island," she replied quietly. "We called Stone's Droplet, but others call it…New Canter's Hover."

Eustass looked even more curious then before. "A Sky Island, huh? I heard rumors, but thought they were fake."

"There are many, but most can't get to them so they are never visited," she told him, a deep frown pulling down on the corners of her lips, a glaze overtaking her orange eyes.

Kidd noticed. "Someone came to yours," he commented more than questioned.

"Yeah." and that was all she said before rolling over sharply onto her side so she wouldn't have to look at him, anymore. _He_ came to mind, so she decided that getting sleep would be better for her conscious. Though, Eustass slipped up to her back so his chest pressed against and then wrapping his arm around her, he squeezed her tightly, and it shouldn't be confused as a hug since nails dug into her skin and teeth sunk into her neck. Of course that didn't help clear her mind. It made it worse.

But then there was the rapping of knuckles against the door and it made her jump, startled. Eustass grumbled, cursed under his breath as he peeled himself from her back and left the bed to rummage around the room for his clothes to redress. He shrugged on his coat before mumbling grumpily to the person, supposedly Killer, there as he opened the door and then left.

Then she was alone, curled up in a tight ball as she pulled the blankets over her form to sleep away the pain and images of what was in her future.

* * *

"We're here; first island of the New World," Killer declared as he and Kidd strolled across the deck to see the wasteland of a place with the remains of village, filled with burnt building.

Seemed like the town was already wiped out, the tombstones answered that; a pity, really. Kidd wanted to show the New World he was a force to be reckoned with. Though, his eyes traveled to the other little ship docked there. A ship worse for ware as the sides were riddled with cannon holes, the sails tattered and burned and one of the small masses was missing completely. There was a battle, and Kidd missed it. Or someone was trying to flee. Both were considered a god damn shame and Kidd felt he had the right to do something about it.

"Let's see what's up," Kidd jerked his head to the island as he leaned against the railing. "Something, uh…good will happen," he added as he glanced to his first mate, smirking. "Don'tcha think?"

Killer chuckled shortly. "Agreed, and I think…" he trailed off when Kidd moved from the railing.

Kidd eyed his first mate oddly. "What?"

Killer was silent before pointing to his captain's lower chest, just above the blue sash around his waste, and bluntly asked. "That _her_ blood?"

* * *

Bella had sneaked away from Heat's watchful gaze and scampered off to her master's side. Thanks to her small size, she was able to slip past the lingering crew members within the ship by shadow and make it to the captain's quarters with ease. The door was open just a crack, enough for her to squeeze through.

Bella's tiny claws clicked against the wood of the floor as she went to the bedside, seeing her master's limp arm hanging over the edge. She whined, whimpering as she nudged her master's hand with her nose and licked her fingers tips.

The hand was still as the pup continued to try and coax her master to wake, but after a few nudges later, a finger twitched and then more until there was a sluggish groan. "Bella…" her master coughed softly, and the blue hand moved to scratch the pup behind the ears. Her master stifled a sharp breath of pain as she shuffled over to edge of the bed to weakly smile down at her pup, but then she frowned at the slave collar. "I wish I could get this off, but I don't know where the key could be. Eustass probably has it."

Bella woofed softly, happy, collar on or not, as long as her master was safe. Though a low and weak growl came from the pup when she saw that her master was clearly in pain when she sat up, and she sensed the weak stench of blood hanging in the air.

"Don't worry about me," her master grunted ad her brow twitched when she stood up. "This isn't as bad as what happened to me before, and what's going on with me now…" she trailed off with a deep frown. "I should probably take a shower," she changed the subject and she shuffled to the captain's private bathroom.

Bella sat outside the door like a watch dog on duty, despite the fact that anyone could lock her in a drawer in her state. But she did this for the comfort of her master who had gone through hell that night. Oh, how Bella wished rip the head of that captain clean off his shoulders for two reasons: the collar shocks and hurting her master.

But alas, she could do anything with the slave collar and she wasn't going to be difficult; with the captain and her master's current…_relationship_, Bella felt that if she acted up and got the captain mad, her master would get the sharp end of the stick. Bella's a fighting asset, her master, sadly, is an outlet that can be removed and replaced, and Bella would make sure nothing would happen to her master.

The water from the shower stopped and shortly, her master came out with towel wrapped around her body. Shuffling across the floor, she traveled to the pile of her clothes and put her pants back on. Though, when she picked up her shirt, she sighed at the destroyed fabric.

"Maybe Eustass has a shirt I can borrow until I get my bag back," her master muttered to herself as she dropped the remains of her former shirt and then turned to the captain's drawers. She dug through the contents until she pulled out a large red, button up shirt. "It's big, but better than nothing," and she put it on.

Then the sound of an explosion rattled the ship, making her jump and turn in the direction of the porthole, seeing that the thick glass was tinted orange. Frowning, she quickly picked up Bella and then left the captain's quarters and walked cautiously to deck. But no one was there. It was completely vacant safe for the lookout high in the crow's nest, who wanted to avoid more injury.

Her master covered her mouth to cough to block the weak smoke of fire rising from the island. She mumbled something under labored breath walked to the railing to see what was going on. Her eyes opened wide: it was mass murder.

The second ship docked was an inferno that lit the starry sky as the wood crackled violently and the sails withered away to nothing. There was movement on the burning deck, the scorched bodies of trapped crewmen ran around wildly with no escape but to jump into the dark waters where they would either be dragged to the depths of the sea by local man-eating fish or be cut down at shore by the blood thirst Kidd Pirates.

In the middle was Eustass, laughing like a madman with one large arm made of only scarp metal as he fought with the already defeated unnamed captain. The man seemed to plead with Eustass, beg for his life, but that would never happen. With a wave of his hand, an iron spike came from the burnt tree line and rammed into the captain's heart, blood spurting from the wound.

Eustass killed the man in cold blood, and then he turned to order his crew to crucified the already weakened crew on the bitter shores of the destroyed island.

* * *

The fire burned brightly as he sat on a crate before the flames. He watched the flickering orange wisps, a small smirk on his lips. The island may have been dead of a town and life, but the pitiful crew that stumbled upon it had made up for it. They tried to escape back to Paradise and, well, Kidd decided they didn't get to go back. If they can't make it in the New World due to fear then they didn't have the right to go back; they were failure as pirates. And now, every other crew that landed on this island in the future will know once they came to the New World, they didn't get to flee back because it got tough; it was die or push, with the strongest surviving the longest.

Then a foot nudged his own, tearing him from his thoughts. He glanced up, seeing Killer jerk his head towards the newly crucified pirates.

Kidd looked the way, smirking with a grunt of a chuckle as he saw his little Angel staring at the gory scene. She looked disturbed by the sight and disgusted that some of the pirates were still alive as they hung from the crosses. She shuffled away, avoiding the cries of the wounded and the blood puddles with a deep frown as she clutched the pup to her chest. Then she looked towards him, feeling his eyes on her. His smirked widened and he waved a single finger, ushering her over.

Obediently, she came to him slowly. "…yes?" She asked as a hand went to cover her mouth when she coughed; her voice still as hoarse as before, no matter how soft she tried to make it; the smoke must have had a really bad affect on her, more than a normal person, anyway.

"Didn't think you'd come out," Kidd commented as he rested his chin in a hand propped up with his elbow on knee. "Was kinda rough, ya know?" He smirked.

She turned her head away, and Kidd thought he saw the faintest hints of pink on her cheeks; it wasn't embarrassment, it looked like humiliation though, which made Bella growl lowly. Though, the pup was ignored, and Angel looked back to him, any sign of color besides blue gone from her cheeks. "You're covered in blood," she changed the topic calmly.

Kidd glanced down at himself, crimson splattering his skin and clothing; all from his victims, but a little splash from his little Angel; also a victim. He shamelessly smirked and simple said: "Happens."

"And it reeks of _smoke_," she commented tightly, coughing into her hand again.

"Happens when a fires going," Kidd's smirk widened, amused at her squirming of being in the aftermath of the massacre.

"I think I'll go back to the ship then…" she told him. "The air is cleaner there."

"Hmm," Kidd hummed. "Fine, do what you want. Just don't _fly _away," he taunted, which made Angel glare at him darkly and Bella bark at him angrily before the Skylander turned sharply on her heel and stormed away.


	6. Chapter 6

Alpenwolf: She's **not** an angel, she's a skylander, which is different...right?

Sorry for mistakes.

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, but OCs are mine.

* * *

Chapter 6

Shaking the tiny glass bottle in her hand, two more pills plopped into her open palm, the last few of her prescription. The tiny, crude looking pills rolled back and forth as she shifted her hand. She wished she could limit her use on the medicine like before, but it couldn't be helped anymore, especially when Eustass blew cigarette smoke into her face on a daily basis. It tickled him pink every time, just watching her suffer as she choked on her own lungs and almost threw up blood. That caused her to take more of her medicine than normal, she was overdosing and she knew it. She was only supposed to take it once a week, two pills and that was it. Since she left her home in the sky and came down to earth, she had been taking more doses, but now…now on this ship, she had been taking them everyday for a week.

"Too late now," she murmured with a sigh and then gulped down the last of her pills. "At least I have the herbs to make that early potion. Won't do much, but it'll help until I find the Cure."

"Find what?" A voice snuck up from behind and hands slapped down onto the desk, trapping her in.

Not daring a glance, she kept her eyes fixated on her things lying on the desk. "Why do you care?" She countered as she grabbed her bag to store the pill bottle.

"Point taken," Eustass replied, but before she could put away the bottle, he snatched it up. "But what's this? You take it every mornin', what's it do, huh?"

"Its medicine," she answered shortly, gingerly taking it from between his fingers, but he held firm.

"Ugliest lookin' pills I've ever seen," Eustass scoffed, shaking the bottle to make the pills within jump against the glass.

"That's because they're _hand-made_," she responded softly, taking the bottle from his hand successfully and put it in her bag. "I helped with the creation. Back at home, I'm spirit healer's assistant, sorta like a doctor's assistant, as you call them down here."

"Well~" Eustass purred, hand going to her hip as the other went to the head. "Hello nurse~…" huskily, he whispered into her ear before nipping the exposed skin of her neck and his fingers slipped into the waistband of her shorts.

She had the gut feeling the side of her cheek was going to become acquainted with the desk surface.

_Knock, knock, knock_. "_Land, Kidd,_" Killer shortly said before his voice disappeared and his footsteps faded away.

Eustass tsked and turned sharply away. "Get ready an' come to deck," he ordered and slammed the door shut behind.

She sighed in relief, saved by a hair. She may have gotten somewhat used to it because _this_ couldn't be any worse with what's happened and happening to her now, but that didn't mean she liked it in anyway; if she could avoid it she would. But that aside, she didn't want to dally around, Eustass didn't like to be kept waiting; she found that out the hard way. Quickly, she slipped on her brown trench coat, her wings folding comfortably against her back as the fabric rubbed against them and then she headed up to deck.

The crew was like a pack of busy bees, doing so many things that she was in awe. She'd been on a few ships before, but never stayed out a deck. Seeing how a crew worked as one through all the shouting and cursing made her stare. Yet, she couldn't hang around. She was in the way; the constant bump of careless shoulders told her that. So, she went to the side and allowed the crew to continue their work.

She leaned over the railing, inspecting the island. It was an industrial one by the looks of; a large city with tall smoke towers that billowed up high into the sky, the smoke so thick that she couldn't even see the print labeling the company. But, the island only had one city such as that; there were still forested parts with small rolling country side and a tiny homey village could be seen. That one large city wanted to expand through, for, as the ship sailed closer, she saw billboards with advertisements about new communities that would be built and then challenges for citizens to add to donations. Large posters at the harbor told men to work, work more and the work hardest for pirate protection or there were job opportunities at the Stone Mill, the factory that make the strongest building materials for house to fight against New World Pirate attacks. And overall, the place reeked of smoke.

She had to muffle the smell using Eustass's coat sleeve. She clung to the fur, burying her face to it so the only thing that entered her nose was the faint scent of nicotine and blood; much better than inhaling smoke.

Luckily, Eustass didn't comment on the behavior and went on with his task of barking orders to his crew. But then he started to move, walking alongside his navigator and first mate.

Killer had scouted ahead to scan the city for anything notable, which were only rumors that the mayor was working along side a pirate captain for protection. It seemed interesting to the first mate and he wanted to now more.

Eustass agreed, adding that it would be entertaining to investigate, but also take his first territory of the New World, if it was worth it of course.

While Killer was on a mission of the island, Chamberlain was searching the city for good supply stores and a tavern, but on the way, he found out that the log post system was entirely different in the New World. The log post, instead of one needle, had three because of all the different islands one could go to. There were more choices to pick from, more dangers to conquer and more treasure to steal.

Eustass was excited to hear the news; he lived off bloody, heart-pounding adventure. "This is gonna be good, ain't it?"

"Most definitely," Killer agreed solemnly.

"We'll get started as soon as I get the new log post," Chamberlain added. "I even heard that it only takes a few hours for it to set, but I don't have all the details on it just yet. It'll help though if that's how it works, though."

"Really?" Eustass questioned. "So no more waiting around for a week, or worse, a month."

"Or wasting time to storm Marine Bases for eternal posts," Killer said his two cents.

"Ah, but those raids were fun," Eustass chuckled wickedly.

"But a waste," Killer scoffed.

"Hmph," Eustass huffed, dropping the subject and swiftly hook and arm around her waist, forcing her to his side. "Come on. Let's head inside."

The crew had gotten to the tavern during the short walk from port. The seedy bar was filled with pirates. The scarred and tattooed muscular skin of ragged men singing slurred tunes of whiskey and whores. She didn't know whether the smell of alcohol from men or the stench of cheap perfume from women was worse. At least the smoke wasn't thick, that was something to be thankful for. There was a few with cigarettes and cigars between their teeth, but the spinning ceiling fans and open windows snuffed out most of it.

Eustass then left her alone, going to the bartender with Killer and Chamberlain at his sides.

She was left in the doorway, the rest of the crew bumping shoulders with her to get passed. After that night, the crew paid no attention to her; they didn't touch the property of their captain. It almost made her feel like…she made the right decision. Almost though, but at least one man was better than an entire crew, right?

The door was then closed roughly behind her, making her snap from thought and scurry further into the bar, looking for Heat. He was the one that Eustass ordered to watch Bella, but she couldn't find the second mate anywhere, or at least it was too difficult to spot him among the monstrous crowd within the place.

"Maybe if I wait by the stairs…" she thought aloud. "I can see if he heads to the second floor or maybe get a better view. He shouldn't be that hard to find, considering how he looks and all."

So, she went through with the plan, easing her way around the crowds of drunken men with dance partners. She went unnoticed more than half way then she was suddenly stopped as a hand slammed into the wall to block her path. First instincts told her it was Eustass, but when she looked at the arm of the man, she saw nothing but crimson dragon tattoos on his tanned skin.

"Lookie here boys," the man slurred, his hot breath that reeked of rum bathing her ear. "Its little _girl_ blue."

"Doubt she's _really_ blue," another man countered skeptically. "We're just so wasted we're seein' things again."

"I'm already seein' stars!" a third chirped with a hiccup.

"_Shuddup!_" The tattooed man snapped to the others behind him before turning back to her. "Come'on sweet thang, lookie 'ere," he cooed as a large hand started to cradle her chin.

She turned her head sharply, escaping the greasy fingers and instantly flipped back her jacket to reach her weapon, but her belt was empty. Her eyes opened wide; where was it? Then she growled: Eustass, he took it. Now she had nothing to defend herself with. The man got closer, trying to get her to look at him, but she refused and hugged the wall, trying to create distance.

Then there was a yelp of pain, making her eyes open wide at the screech and she dared glance over. Instead of being greeted with a drunk, sneering grin, she saw a board back covered by maroon colored fur.

"What do you think you're doing?"

_What do you think you're doing! _

The words were a key to her memory, and in a flash of blurry white light, Eustass's fur coat disappeared, replaced with the lean back of man that wore a white lab coat with the symbol of pickaxe and pistol crossing. She stared at the sight with wide eyes, her pupils dilated to the point where her irises looked to be shaking. It was only until Eustass spoke again did she snap back to reality.

"Touchin' other people's stuff ain't polite, ya know?" Eustass sneered, almost hissing at them.

"Damn! He knocked out Pat like it was nothin', who _is _this bastard!"

"Heh," the voice of the tattooed man chuckled. "It's that Supernova brat, Eustass '_Captain_' Kidd. You're a small fry in the New World now."

Eustass chuckled darkly, and she could just see the evil grin widening on his lips. "Brat? Small fry? I'm _none_ of those; better take back those words or I'll make ya eat them, fucker."

The tattooed man bellowed with laughter. "I'd like ta see you try, brat! This ain't Paradise, boy, this is the _New World_. That'll be enough to explain what I'm saying, eh?"

"I get what you're sayin', but," Eustass eerily replied. "Words aren't enough to prove it."

And the brawl began, but she didn't see it. She may have heard the tables being thrown and the shouts of pain lingering in the air, but she didn't see it.

She fled the scene because the memories started to submerge from their long slumber.

* * *

Her hideaway was a little storage room on the second floor. Huddled in a corner by a mop and broom, she curled up in a tight ball, legs pressed against her chest and chin resting on her knees.

All she could think about was what she had hidden so well so easily come out. Stupid Eustass; this was his fault. If he hadn't said those words, then it wouldn't have come back, hell, if he hadn't of swiped her weapon without her knowledge then he wouldn't have had to come to her. With her staff, she would have been able to fend those sharks off easily.

But that's not how it could have been, so now she was left to remember that unfaithful day six years ago…

"_Grandpapa, I got the herbs you wanted!" she shouted with a bright smile as she burst through the entrance to the hut, sack full of plants thrown over her shoulder and her little blue pup barked happily at her heels._

_Her grandfather looked up from his work of crushing medicine ingredients within a tiny stone bowl. A smile came to his wrinkled blue skinned face, his orange eyes soft as he waved her in. "Thank you, child; I hope you have enough Phoenix Root to help with your Father's burns," he told her, standing up from his seat with his old wooden cane supporting his weary bones. "Just because he is Chief doesn't mean he can play with fire, literally. The stupid old, fool," he scoffed, annoyed. _

_She giggled girlishly as she placed the sack on the table. "Papa just likes to be flashy for Mama," she reminded him sweetly with a wink as she stuck out her tongue. _

_Her Grandfather rolled his eyes at the words. "And one day it will be—"_

_An explosion._

_It startled her, making her jump, her eyes opening wide as she quickly turned her attention to the open doorway. "Wh—what was that!" She yelped, going to the doorway when she saw the color orange light the white, cloudy floor, but her grandfather stopped her._

"_Child!" He snapped, his old voice sounding desperate as he grabbed her arm to pull her back. "Hide! Hide! Don't—"_

_A second explosion. _

_Closer; it was closer, she could tell because the clouds shook violently. Then long shadows formed against the clouds under their feet, looming with unknown purpose and then there stood two men. They had masks covering their faces that had black glass covering the eyeholes and a strange looking thing that covered their mouths, like a double snout for a pig. But the oddest thing was that type of weapons they bore; she'd never seen anything like them before, not even in the crazy tales from her father told her. The men were stoic as they marched in, the heels of their thick black making imprints in the clouds._

_Then they pointed their weapons at her and her grandfather, leaving her to stare down an endless dark hole._

"_Child!" Her grandfather screamed, grabbing a hold of her so she was in his protective embrace and her face was shoved to the fabric of his robes._

_There was a click, then a grunt and shout._

"_What do you think you're doing!" a male seethed angrily._

_There was a moment of confusion, and her grandfather's grip loosened so she could see what was going on, but all she saw was the two confused masked men and the back of another._

"_Sir—we're following orders!" one of the men replied, his mask muffling the shocked tone in his voice._

"_And I out rank those orders," the man angrily snapped. "You will not kill anyone from this tribe! They are the natives here!"_

_The masked men flinched and quickly nodded with a salute. "Yes, Sir!" They yelled together and then quickly scrambled from the hut, disappearing from sight._

_The remaining man huffed, sounding disappointed, but he said nothing of it and asked: "Are you alright?" as he started to turn around to reveal—_

**Smack.**

The door to the storage room flew open, making her jump with a yelp. Quickly looking up, she saw the shadowed form of Eustass standing in the doorway the only thing visible against the darkness being his eyes, narrow and pure white. Then a sneering grin formed on his lips.

"Hiding ain't a good idea," was all he said.

"I—I wasn't hiding!" She countered, scowling at him as she scrambled to stand up. "I—I just didn't want to get caught up in that fight!"

"Heh," Eustass grunted, grin still in place as he let her step pass him. "Bullshit."

"Wh—what?" She stuttered, turning back to face him with wide eyes.

Eustass slammed his hands to the wall, caging her in. "You're lyin'."

She stared at him, finding herself slink closer and closer to the wall as his face became inches from hers. "I couldn't do anything, anyway. You took my staff!"

Eustass merely smirked. "You don't need it. Plus, Seastone ain't my taste, get what I mean?"

"If I had it then I could have handled myself in a petty fight such as that!" She snapped bitterly. "I don't need to you to protect me!"

Eustass chuckled lightly, his eyes fluttering closed for a moment before the reopened slowly into two amused slits. "I like my things untouched," was all her said as his finger rested under her chin tilt her head back.

"Why do you care?" She barked, jerking her head away. "I'm only a whore to you, something that can be replaced!"

"No, no, no, Angel," Eustass tsked, waving a single finger between their noses. "You ain't _just_ a whore," he started as he grabbed her chin again, roughly this time, making her look him dead in the eyes. "You're _my_ whore, and that makes all the difference."


	7. Chapter 7

fangirl-4-evEr-xx: Thank you.

Alpenwolf: She isn't shorter than a Skylander (I think)...I don't remember talking about her height? But yeah, Angel is being haunted.

Sorry for grammar mistakes.

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, but plot and OCs are mine.

* * *

Chapter 7

_A tiny breath of air fluttered passed her lips as she leaned over, curiously peeking over the edge of the cloudy surface to examine the ships below her home in the Blue Sea. From her high vantage point, they looked smaller than the canoes her tribe used to move through the White Rivers of their precious sky island. Though, they were much bigger than that; the doctor told her so, saying that they were called galleons, which were ships used to move large amounts of supplies or even people. She wanted to get closer and see the real size of the galleon beasts, but she could never do that. She wasn't allowed to leave the sky island; only the men of her tribe could, and the galleons were all collected around the Crystallized Stone. _

_It was a stalagmite that formed from the purity of the White Rivers of her home and her grandfather had said that over thousands of years, the stone built up from dripping water filled with minerals and it cut through the clouds to touch the oceans below. But the rough waters of the Blue Sea crashing along the monstrous stalagmite's tip caused it to flare out at the bottom; her grandfather said it was like the island wanted to become with the Blue Sea, yet the ocean always denied it. _

_Usually the island was over looked as nothing but a strange rock, but now, after decades of only her tribe living there, other people had come._

_"Ne, ne, ne," a curious, yet wary voice mumbled beside her._

_Looking over, she saw her father crouched down on hands like and knees like a nosy child, all just to investigate the same sight. "Ne, ne, ne; I don't like this…" he muttered with furrowed, straight brows as he warily stared down at the men that looked like nothing but ants from their point of view. "They were violent and set fire to the Billow Trees! You know how I love the Billow Nut Milk!"_

_She laughed lightly, feeling a trickle of sweat form on her brow at her father's behavior; acting so juvenile when he was the leader of the tribe. "W—well they didn't know how the Billow Trees can be…and at least Doctor stopped them, Papa," she replied with a weak smile. "Those men listened to him instantly when he said not to touch anything else and stay off the clouds."_

_"Hmm…" her father hummed in deep thought and squinted his orange eyes narrowly at the men far below them. "I don't trust it still," he huffed, and still in his crouched position, he lifted a hand. "Never trust them land dwellers," he reminded as he wagged a finger in the air._

_"I promise, Chief," a smooth voice said from behind, making her and her father yelp in shock and they whipped around, staring up to the figure shadowed by the sun light, glasses glaring like two moons. "I can be trusted. I only want to study your tribe and the stalagmite."_

_Her father yelped again and quickly scrambled from the clouds to his feet, shielding her with an arm and then pointed a finger to the doctor's nose. "I thought I told you to leave! You burned my precious Billow Trees down! Fiend!"_

_"But, Papa," she tried to reason, ducking under his out stretched arm to stand between the two men. "His men didn't know…and he saved me and Grandpapa! He's not as bad as you think! I promise!"_

_"Eh?" Her father's blinked at her in confusion, but then something dawned within his mind and his eyes narrowed suspiciously at her. "And how do you know that, huh?" _

_She gulped, her eyes going shifty as she nervously stood before her father. "Well, after that time…I talked to him…" she replied sheepishly, looking down as her big toe nudged a little bit of cloud into the sky._

_Her father gasped his eyes wide and his jaw hanging low. "Wahh~!" he screeched, his blue skin turned a light shade of purple under his eyes. "Yo—you talked to him!" He shouted in disbelief and pulled at the feathers decorating his headdress. "I've I told you not to talk to strangers!"_

_"Err…no," she replied as a bead of sweat trickled down her brow. "There were no strangers on the island until two days ago."_

_Her father grumbled under his breath, taken back by the words slightly, but then he bounced back to his scolding-fatherly-side. "So what! I'm telling you now so learn from your mistakes!" and he stomped a foot to the ground as steam poured from his ears like a kettle with water under burning flames._

_"But he told me he wants to learn of our culture and about the island and The Crystal! He doesn't want any harm!" she defended the doctor. "His men only misunderstood orders and he told them to leave us so he can learn!"_

_"She's right, Chief," the doctor interjected smoothly, stepping to stand beside her. "I came here to study your people and island; so is my job as an anthropologist. And I'm still terribly sorry about the Billow Trees, the captain didn't know they were that kind of living creature, as in they are actually snakes with palm leafs and coconuts atop their heads. They were only defending themselves. I promise it won't happen again."_

_"Mm-hmm," her father hummed skeptically and eyed him suspiciously, whipping around quickly and crossed his arms over his chest. "That's only what you say," he grumbled and then glanced over his shoulder with a dark look in his sharp orange eyes. "But can you prove it, hmmm?"_

_"I'll do anything to prove that I mean no harm," the doctor replied sincerely with a small smile coming to his lips. "I just want to study, nothing more nothing less."_

_Her father was stoic for a moment, but then a mischievous smirk came to his lips as his eyes narrowed with amusement. "He, he," he chuckled as he watched them with a devious look for an expression. "I know what you can do," and then he whipped around swiftly to face them once more, finger pointing at the doctor's nose once more. "You shall juggle with God's Power at the next festival!"_

_The doctor stared at her father, the glare from his glasses still shielding his eyes as he frowned slightly. "What is God's Power?"_

_"FI~IRE!" Her father shouted and then started to laugh wildly._

_"…" the doctor said nothing as a single bead of sweat slipped down his cheek._

_"He—he's only saying that because he can't do it," she told the doctor with a sheepish laugh._

_"E—eh!" Her father gasped in shock, his eyes wide and jaw hanging low. "You didn't have to tell him that!" He then barked, his blue cheeks turning crimson and he stomped forward to pull at her cheeks. "Talkative little teen you are; talking to strangers and talking back to your Papa!"_

_She yelped as the skin of her cheeks were pulled which way and that by her father's large fingers, which made her struggle to get away from his grasp, but the light chuckling to their side stopped everything. Looking over, they saw the Doctor attempting to hide his laugh with a hand. _

_"You know, Chief," he started to say with a smirk curling the corner of his lips. "Don't mess with fire or you'll get burned."_

She gasped loudly, in a cold sweat as she sat up in a flash from the bed. Her shoulders shuttered as her breathing was labored. It should have been a happy dream about her past, seeing the images of her father at him, but the moment, the word…

_Don't mess with fire or you'll get burned._

Those words were so true, especially coming from _his_ mouth. He had lit those flames six years ago and she messed with it unknowingly, and she got burned. Now, she was left with the scars of her mistakes. She was forever poison by him and those men.

She slapped her cheeks to get her mind away from the past. Laying back down, she was pulled back to Eustass's side by his arm that was draped over her stomach. The warmth of his bare skin showed to escape to her memories, and though no matter how many times she tried close her yes to go back to sleep, she couldn't.

With a sigh, she slipped away from Eustass's loose grasp and put a pillow in her place before he pulled her back. When that was done, she pushed away the blankets and got out of bed. Her clothes scattered across the floor, she scooped each piece up one at a time and then put it on, the last item being her beloved trench coat. It did well to hide her blue sky, the fabric long and the hood large to cast a thick shadow to shield her face.

Once she was ready, she went quietly exited the room, leaving Kidd to snore away by himself with a pillow as his new snuggle plushie. Going down stairs, she saw that the dinning area of the tavern was beaten up from the bar fight the other night. Men were busy at work, hammering nails to boards so the giant hole in the wall was covered, and new glass was being replaced in the window. An elderly woman swept the floor of debris left over from broken tables that had already been removed.

Besides the repairmen and elderly woman, the tavern only held three other people; the bartender arranging new bottles of wine and spirits on the selves behind him, a serving girl sitting at the bar, her arms folded atop the wood so she could sleep away the early morning despite the woodwork going on behind her, and then there a single old man at a table by the window, reading the morning newspaper with a mug of coffee at his side.

She sat quietly at a table near the back of the room, going unnoticed by all. Though there was probably a reason for that: Kidd. Enough said. So, she didn't expect the bartender to wake the serving girl up anytime soon. Not that she was hungry or anything, but the smell of coffee was tempting her to say something, but she'd wait a bit longer. There was a newspaper on the table, so she used the to pass the time until something came up, whether it be getting served on or members of the crew storming downstairs.

She picked it up, the papers rustling in her fingers grasp as she unfolded it to look at the head lines and front page picture.

Her eyes opened wide, her heart froze a second before slowly building up to a rapid pulse when she saw the black and white picture.

The crossing pistol and pickaxe, the symbol of the Stone Mill company on this island, the city known as Ole Canter.

"This..." she stuttered, her hands beginning to tremble. "This...is..."

Then the door suddenly slammed open, the light from the rising sun making their forms black against a white background. Then they stepped into the tavern revealing the uniformed men, with gas masks covering faces and rifles in hand. She didn't need to see them to know who they were; the ominous dark outline was all she need.

The soldiers that invaded and destroyed her home.


	8. Chapter 8

Alpenwolf: Ah, sorry, I did misunderstand. Here's an I'm-sorry-cookie. And all the questions will be answered...ish...soon...ish. Eh, you'll see.

Mr. Panda: Thank you, and I purposely left out my main OC's name. There is a reason to my madness. Though, as of now, her nick-name is Angel, so feel free to call her that.

Sorry for grammar errors.

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, but plot and OCs are mine.

* * *

Chapter 8

She kept her head low, her eyes wide with dilated pupils at the unwelcoming sound pounding through her ears. The feeling was bitter in her chest, the rising beat of her heart against her ribs as the soldiers heels stomped against the old wooden floorboards. Did they notice; did they know it was her? She didn't know if these men were stationed at her island in the past, but she was sure they would know her. Even if the blue skin was a dead give away, after the crime she committed, they all knew her. Yet, what a crime was in their eyes was justice in hers. Though, it was a bittersweet revenge.

She ground her teeth together, momentarily forgetting the soldiers as the memories started to rise to the surface, but she dared on fall back into them so she could relive that moment in her life.

"Oi."

The voice startled her, making her muscles clench tightly and she was ready to dash to Eustass's protection; it was one thing he was good for.

"Why're you sitting her alone?"

Her paranoia started to settle when her mind finally recognized the voice and she was able to relax when Matt and Scotty bunkered down beside her, sandwiching in close quarters as other crewmen crammed around one table. She answered him with a shrug, which seemed good enough because he began pounding a fist to the table, demanding the formerly sleeping serving girl to get her perky little ass from the bar and over to the table. The crew whooped and hollered along with him, using it as an alarm clock until the girl sluggishly shuffled over.

The Skylander ignored them all, only muttering she wanted coffee when questioned by the serving girl. Then the men grew rowdy, but she paid no attention because she focused entirely on the soldiers that stood before the man she noted before.

He looked to be a doctor of the sorts, wearing a pristine white medical coat and slick black suit underneath. Without a care in the world, he sat here with newspaper in hand, leisurely reading it with a nonchalant smile on his lips.

"Doctor Hans," the first solider spoke through the mask, his voice muffled and nasally from the protective plastic and metal. "The Mayor has been looking for you all morning. He has much to speak to you about along with Captain Brittle John."

"Mm-hmm," Doctor Hans hummed absentmindedly and he took a long sip of his coffee. "Well, my dear friend the Mayor knows I like to have my morning coffee at Barney's. It is the best coffee in the city; it has a countryside taste."

"The Mayor wishes to see you now," the second soldier snapped, irritated with the doctor's relaxed attitude to something that seemed majorly important.

Doctor Hans sighed deeply as he gingerly placed the coffee mug back onto the table. "I see," was all he said as he folded the morning paper then stood up and from his pocket, he pulled out a pair of sunglasses and slipped them on to cover his sharp grey eyes. Then with a huff, he headed towards the open doorway, his pale skin blending in with the morning light until he disappeared completely, followed by the soldiers black outlines until the door was closed.

But, the only thing that stood out was the symbol on all the men's back: the crossing pistol and pickaxe. And that Doctor Hans, from behind, looked exactly like _him_.

Mentally shaking her head, she cast aside the thoughts of the past and focused on her next plan of action.

This was the base of the soldiers that destroyed her home, which meant the Cure was here. It had to be, and that doctor must know it, but there would be no way to reach him with all those soldiers in her way; he looked to be personal friends of the mayor. Would it be safe to speak to him in the morning then; he came to this tavern every morning. No, it was in the open and she didn't know how Doctor Hans would react to her presence. It had to be in private, somewhere no one could see because if the Cure could not be created by her and only the doctor, then she needed to capture him and find a ship that could take her to Stone's Droplet, luckily she had an Eternal Post with her.

So, she had to go about this carefully. Though, time was ticking if Eustass was planning to leave soon. Then there was no time to waste and she quickly put the first stages of her plan into action.

Standing up from the rowdy table, she went unnoticed to the bar where Killer and Heat stood, discussing their plans for the island. She cared little of what the pirates wanted to do; her only objective was to get Bella from Heat.

"Excuse me?" She polite interrupted the first and second mates. "Could I have Bella back, please?"

The two stared at her a long minute before glancing back at each other. Then Heat spoke. "I see no harm in it," the second mate said. "Not like she can do anything when the dog has the slave collar on. Plus, I'm getting sick of carrying her around," and he held out the pup, dropping Bella into her open hands.

Killer merely shrugged.

"Also," the Skylander continued. "May I go back to the ship? I accidently left my medicine there."

Killer stared at her, watching her closely, but then silently and slowly, nodded his head.

"Thank you," she quickly said before dashing off back to the Kidd Pirates ship.

She was sure that Killer saw through her lie like it was nothing, but he must not have known why she wanted to go back to the ship; he probably figured it was to escape Eustass for a bit longer, but that was not the case. She was going to search for her staff and send Bella out to scout the city.

Turning down a shadowed alley, she crouched down and placed Bella on the ground. "Can you go into wolf-from," she asked her little blue pup. "I know the collar is scary, but I need you to investigate; you saw the soldiers, right?"

Bella nodded silently then arched her little back so hair stood on end and closed her eyes tightly. With a growl, she ignored the heavy weight the slave collar had on her and shifted her form into that of a sky wolf.

The Skylander smiled weakly and patted Bella on the head. "It will only be for awhile, I promise. Just look around the city, especially where the soldiers meet and tell me everything you find, and stay in the shadows, okay? It'll hide the color of your fur so people think you're just a stray dog."

Bella nodded quickly before darting off into the darkness the long shadows early morning still had.

The Skylander watched her beloved companion disappear, a small frown coming to her lips. "Please be safe and don't get caught," she whispered before going her own way to the ship.

* * *

She searched everywhere for it, looking in every nook and cranny of Eustass's room but she finally found it at the top of a shelf, which was actually genius because she couldn't see it from her vantage point. It was only when, almost in defeat, she leaned roughly against the bookcase and heard the odd rattling that she looked up, seeing part of her staff peeking out from the top. Then he another shove to the shelving, her staff came out, the compacted rob plopping into her open hands.

She smirked smugly. "Nice try, Eustass," and she hooked the weapon to her hip and hid it carefully behind the fabric of her trench coat.

It was an odd feeling to care such a weapon made of Sea Stone, especially since it used to be...his. She remembered all times she asked to use it, that it could be hers because she worked well with staffs. He had been hesitant but caved it, and she would admit, it was his downfall. But, she would also admit that it wasn't a pleasant downfall in anyway.

She shook the thought off and focused on the future. She'd have to make sure to hide her staff well in the room at the tavern; she didn't want Eustass finding out she took it back.

Now, she would conduct her own investigation of the city; she wasn't about to let Bella do all the dangerous work. Though, as she started down the gangplank of the ship, she saw that her plan was taking a sharp turn in another direction when Eustass came waltzing down the dock.

"Need to take your medicine, huh?" He skeptically asked, tone full sarcasm. "Did ya hit your head _that_ hard on the headboard or you just trying to get away from me, eh?" He asked with a large smirk.

"No," she replied, which was the truth, but then she covered up with a lie, a reasonable lie. "I wanted to see if you had gloves and a scarf," which were both items that would help her stay incognito.

Eustass's hairless brow arched with confusion. "Why?"

She merely held up a blue skinned hand and then said: "The smoke is getting to me."

Eustass hummed in thoughts as he shoved his hands deep into his pockets and looked around casually, inspecting hazy orange-red skyies. "Seems clear out to me," he shrugged.

"It'll get worse as the day goes on," she countered. "But it doesn't matter since you have nothing like that in your drawers."

"Supply room has somethin' probably," Eustass shrugged again and then glanced at her curiously with narrow eyes. "Check there yet?"

"…No," she felt uneasy with the way he was eyeing her; it was unwavering. "Even if I did, I wouldn't know where to look."

"Hmph," Eustass grunted and rolled his eyes before stomping up the gangplank to where she was. "Follow me," he grumbled, and she did so.

* * *

Rummaging through the supply crate Eustass pointed out, she found extra winter gear. She wasn't picky with the choices since it was for the men; gloves and a scarf was all she need anyway. The pieces of clothing serving their purpose of hiding the exposed blue skin of her body.

"Thanks," she found herself muttering quietly to Eustass.

Eustass merely huffed and turned sharply on his heel. "I've work to do," he told her bluntly. "Chamberlain said there's a shipwright company here that makes cannons. I want ones that'll withstand the New World," and he started for the door, waving a hand over his shoulder, a signal for her to follow.

"I see," was all she said as she obediently trailed behind him; she didn't have much choice in the matter.

The city of Ole Canter was slowly getting darker instead of lighter as the sun rose higher into the sky. The smoke from when the Stone Mill opened started to grow thicker and thicker and would continue to darken until the company gates closed for the night and the machines were turned off.

Eustass seemed to know where he was going and walked the streets as if he already owned them. Yet, instead of the people shifting away from him in fear, they were casual. It was strange, but Eustass didn't seem give a damn.

She thought that he would be the type to sudden burst into flames and cause havoc if went unnoticed, and she was about to comment on that, but then she stopped.

They had passed a building, nothing special about it whatsoever, yet she was drawn to it like a magnet to metal.

A gloved hand rubbed against the grey stone, her orange eyes scanning the glimmering beads of minerals within the smooth cement block. Her fingertips rubbed against the surface, and she felt...strange. Funny; she had a nostalgic feeling when close to this stone.

"A beauty, ain't she?"

She jumped at the sound of the voice behind her and she whipped around to face a construction worker with a large, proud grin on his scruffy face as he balanced wooden boards easily on his thick shoulder. She was taken back by his cheery mood, and admitted, he was one of the friendliest people she'd met in a while… Though, she shook that off and quietly asked: "What…?"

The carpenter's grin only widened and he chuckled as he rubbed the side of his finger under his nose. "The building; she's a beauty," he repeated.

"Oh…I suppose," she replied. "The stone was strange, that's all."

The carpenter then blinked in confusion, a small frown coming to his lips. "You don't sound too good."

She was silent for a moment, before saying. "Just a small cold with a bad cough and soar throat," she smoothly lied.

"Ah," the carpenter nodded before grinning goofily again. "And the stone 'ere is the greatest invention Ole Canter's ever had," the carpenter proudly said. "After getting the Impenetrable Mineral, our island's been shipping out blocks of it by the millions. It can stop pirate attacks; we've seen it done multiple times. This damn pirate crew's been trying to make Ole Canter its turf, but they fail every time. Its stories like this that gets other islands buying, which helps everyone live, ya know?"

"Yeah…I—" she was stopped short when a hand firmly hooked around her waist and pulled her hip to hip with another. She gasped lightly, startled, and when she looked up, she saw Eustass. And he was not pleased.

The dark scowl, murderous eyes and thin frown made the carpenter she was formerly talking to yelp in fright and turn away with tail between his legs.

Eustass scoffed at the sight as if it was disgusting and then whipped around, taking her with him. "Don't wander off," he snapped sternly. "I don't like it."

She stared up at him blankly, blinking her eyes at his suddenly sour state. Though, she didn't disobey him in a sense, so she cast his reactions as that and remained silently, still hooked to his hip.


	9. Chapter 9

Lily Noir: Thank you for liking my story so far. I'm not much of a dark writer, so this has been tricky for me, but it's good to see that it is enjoyed by people. And I know it's "log pose" but I looked up through translations (not a smart idea) and I have been using "log post" ever since, even though it should be "log pose". I have used that in all my stories so far, and it feels weird to change it...

Alpenwolf: You have no idea how this plan will work out; it ain't pretty.

Sorry for mistakes.

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece, but OCs are mine.

* * *

Chapter 9

His pale fingers fiddled with a navy blue lock, twirling the piece of hair between his thumb and forefinger as he dully listened to his second mate repeat the records of supplies that had been replaced and the amount beli spent. Kidd was bored; plain and simple. Of course, these were important details to know since he _was_ captain and all, but with the way his second mate spoke in that monotone voice made it unbearable. Plus, everything was accounted for and there was nothing interesting to hear, _at all_.

Luckily, he had his little Angel to keep him mildly entertained. She sat silently at his side, pulled close so their thighs touched. Though, the window was her main focus; her elbow resting against the inner sill as she watched the patrons through the hazy reflection.

Then the scooting of chair legs across the floor made Kidd glance from the corner of his eyes to see Heat stand, grumbling he had a better chance telling everything to Killer, which was true.

And Kidd had no shame in admitting it either; he had another thing on his mind anyway. Looking over to the window, Kidd gazed at the reflection of Angel. "The dog has more forms," he questioned, yet his tone made it sound like a comment.

He watched her closely, seeing her slouched form go stiff and she raised her chin from the palm of her hand ever so slightly as her eyes opened wide in shock. Then she slowly turned to face him, her thin brows knitting together. "Wh—what do you mean?"

Kidd leaned in, snaking an arm around her shoulders to pull her closer so there was barely a gap between them. Then he smirked. "Killer saw and told me. So, don't hold out."

She was silent for a moment, lips pressed in a thin line before she spoke. "Bella only has three forms…" Angel replied softly.

Kidd stared at her, his eyes growing mildly cold as his brows furrowed. "You lying?"

She shook her head, a sad look coming to her orange eyes and Kidd knew he hit a cord about something, what it was he didn't know and he didn't get a moment to ask. "I want to go out," and she stood up quickly.

Kidd arched a brow, slinging an arm over the back of his chair to give her space. "That a good idea? There's a shit load of smoke out there."

"I'll be fine," was all she said.

"Hmph," Kidd grunted, disinterested in her now. "Don't wander off. I don't like it."

* * *

With a deep sigh, she leaned against the wall beside the tavern's main entrance and tilted her head back to see the heavy breeze push away the heavy smoke from the Stone Mill. She frowned at the memories coming back from the conversation with Eustass. Bella wasn't supposed to have three forms. She was only supposed to be a dog, a normal dog that grew over time, not changing back and forth on a whim. Yet, another effect from _him_, the cause.

She shook her head. _No_, don't think of that; do _not_ think of that. No more looking at the past, it only hurt and caused her stress. Only look to the future, which is to wait for Bella to return.

The night was cold and she felt the chill start creeping into her bones. Shivering, she thought maybe going back inside would be better. She'd be with Eustass again though, but at least his presence was warm in a way…

Her head then snapped up, the odd thoughts of Eustass disappearing when the light barking of Bella entered her ears. With a smile, she crouched down to greet her company. "Welcome back," she whispered happily as she wrapped her arms around the furry neck of Bella's wolf form. "I'm glad you're safe."

Bella woofed in return, but then gently took the sleeve of her master's jacket between her sharp canine teeth and tugged gently.

The Skylander blinked in confusion at her companion. "What? Did you find something?"

Bella nodded her head eagerly, letting go of the fabric between her teeth and tried to get her master to follow, and the Skylander did. The Skylander followed her canine friend quickly through the dark alleys until the rich scent of salt and the stench of rotten fish invades their noses. They were at the harbor, the dark end of town there the seedy people roamed because what they did during the day was unacceptable or illegal. The one number offenders being the pirate crew hanging around a dingy dock covered in a thick shadow cast from their galleon anchored close by.

The Skylander ducked down behind some crates to stay hidden when she recognized the men with red dragon tattoos. These were the men that Eustass brutally assaulted because they mildly assaulted her. She could even pin point the three men from that night because of the bandages wrapped around arms and foreheads, one even had a sling.

"When's Cap coming back, Pat?" the man with large dragon tattoo on the tan skin of his arm asked.

"Dunno, Tye." Pat shrugged from his spot crouched down against a crate. "Probably awhile. He is talking to Dickrad n' all."

"True," Tye agreed with his fellow mate, nodding his head thoughtfully. "But Dickrad_ is_ paying us good money to, uh…_protect_ his city," he smirked, causing the others around him to snicker at the thought.

The Skylander glared with confusion at the words, and looked to Bella, their eyes seeming to hole the same questions. So, were these the men that were rumored to be aligned with the Mayor? This must be their territory then. No wonder they belittled Eustass when he came. They didn't think highly of the Mayor either, though she guessed that's how it was with pirates, having those in authority pay for the safety of their people.

"Oi! Oi!" The man named Tye suddenly spoke up again, looking off to the side. "Cap's back."

She looked towards the man the crew greeted. Despite the look of his slimy crew, this man had the air of a gentleman around him. Hair well kept and skin without a scar on his tan skin, he even wore a black business suit. The only things that made him stay out as a pirate were the red dragon skull with crossbones stitched to the back of his jacket and the exposed dragon head tattoo peeking out at the side of his neck.

"What'd Dickrad wanna talk about, Cap?" Tye asked as he stepped aside of his captain to pass by.

The captain sighed, annoyed. "Please, don't call him that," he said as he sat down heavily on a crate.

"Well, he is kinda a dick," Tye said again. "Consider what he's doing, Cap. It's a dick move, all for a little beli to rub between his fingers," and he did the action to empathize his point.

The captain glanced at his subordinate closely. "Since when do you care for the people of this island and what happens to them?" He asked coolly.

Tye looked taken back by the words. "I _don't_ care. I'm just observing the fact that the person the city looks up to that most is the one hurting them the most."

"Hmm," the captain replied and hung his head as he rested his elbows against his knees. A long moment of silence came from the captain, his crew starting to get anxious, waiting for him to speak, or even move. Then suddenly he moved his hand, his long black painted nail glistening like polished metal in the moonlight as he said the words:"_Talon Stakes,_" and in a flash, bullets shot from his finger tips.

The Skylander then shot back at hooks caught deep into her clothing, pinning her to the wall brutally. The sicking sound of metal slicing flesh pierced her ears and she cried in pain when she felt something sharp cut the skin of her shoulder. Flinching, she shuttered at the burning sensation. Her body shook violently, and she weakly opened one eye to look at the damage, but it was too hard to tell with all the blood stained fabric in the way. Through the pounding against her eardrums, she heard Bella growl deeply, but the wolf hesitated to attack with the collar still wrapped around her neck and instead watched from the shadows.

"You guys are useless," the captain bluntly said as he stood up and looked towards her. "You can't even catch a rat."

Tye growled at his captain's words as he walked away calmly, but then when the man saw her, his brows furrowed in deep thought. "She looks familiar…" and he murmured more to himself that anyone else, and he slowly started to follow after his captain. Then he paused, his eyes opening wide. "Its little girl blue!"

The captain stopped dead in his tracks when he heard that and glanced over his shoulder with a deadly look appearing in his dark eyes. "This is the girl you fought with Eustass Kidd over…"

"Yeah…?" Tye slowly replied, arching a brow to his captain's odd look. "Why?"

Though he spoke to his subordinate, he looked directly. "You should have told me that she was a member of the Kn-awanie Tribe from New Canter's Hover."

Her heart froze and her blood went cold. A lump formed in her throat, and she tried to swallow it, but it was pointless when her mouth as dry as a desert. This was not good, not good at all. He knew about her.

Tye's eyes opened wider at the sound of that. "She's from that bunch of savages?" He asked in disbelief.

Annoyed, his captain glared at him. "She's _blue._"

"Merpeople people are blue!" Tye defended. "Merpeople are all colors of the fuckin' rainbow! How was I supposed the bitch was a Skylander! I couldn't see 'er wings!"

The captain just shook his head, casting aside his subordinate's useless blabbering, and he turned back to her, a dead look in his eyes. "You're the one Conrad told me of," he said, strolling over to her calmly until they were inches apart. "You caused him a lot of trouble back at New Canter's Hover…you know that?"

"I did it for my people," she rasped, her eye twitching in pain from her shoulder.

"_So_ honorable," he dully said, his brown eyes holding no emotion whatsoever. "But I should warn you that I hold no sympathy for what happened to you or your people. All I know is that you screwed up my paycheck."

"And you caused a hundred of people to die!" She snapped, hate filling her words as her fist balled up with rage so blood trickled between her fingers.

"True," the captain agreed, though his tone sounded indifferent. "But not your people; that was all Conrad's doing. My job is on the home base right here," and then he held up a hand that no longer looked normal; it was a reptilian claw with five black talons that gleamed deadly in front of her face. "But, I'm sure Conrad would love to see your head on a sliver platter. It'll get that beli back that you stole from me."

Her eyes opened wide at the sight, but she kept her breath steady, trying to show no fear. It would be a lie to say she wasn't scared. The man may have looked like a 'gentleman', but the aura didn't match anymore. It was murderous, extremely murderous. The dark look in his eyes told her fate: death.

But then she was saved, and it wasn't Bella that jumped from the shadows.

The captain jumped back, skidding to his alarmed crew as a sickle blade came between her and him.

"Why must you cause so much trouble," Killer sighed, annoyed. "Lying and running off. It's getting annoying and I don't like to babysit."

She was just blatantly insulted by the masked blonde, but it could easily be overlooked to the fact that she was just saved by him.

"Cap, let's take him," Tye sneered with a wicked smirk on his lips and had one hand on his saber and his other on a revolver. "It's one against thirty, we can get rid of him easy."

The captain though, held up his hand, signaling his men to hold their advances. "I have no quall with you, your captain, or crew," he told the masked blonde smoothly. "Only her," and he pointed towards the Skylander still pinned against the grimy brick wall.

"And my Captain doesn't like his things touched," Killer replied emotionlessly, his blades at the ready.

"Hmph," the captain huffed and casually stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jacket. "I see," he then said. "Then we'll leave you be."

"_**Captain!**_"

The shouts of his crew were ignored. "Let's go men. We have work to do," and then he turned on his heel, his crew hesitantly following behind.

Killer watched them leave, waiting until the other crew was gone. Then he turned to the Skylander, removing the stakes that pinned her to the wall. He examined the last one before throwing it to the ground, seeing that it looked to be a hooked talon.

The Skylander fell to her knees, putting a hand to her shoulder, applying pressure to the open wound as fresh blood started to ooze out. God, it hurt; she'd need to look at it immediately when she got back... Her thoughts were interrupted when Bella's form came to her side, the wolf whining sadly, feeling guilty that she wasn't able to help. Though, the Skylander simply smiled at her friend before looking up to Killer when she saw him move. "Thank you…" she found herself saying to the masked blonde.

"I wouldn't be," Killer bluntly told her. "I still have to take you to Kidd."

* * *

The palm of his hand whipped against her cheek, the stinging pain lingering on tender skin. Her head felt as if it was spinning as she lost balance and tumbled to the floor with a brutal thud.

Eustass was furious.

His body was stiff as stone, his dark expression craved into the features of his face as he stared down at her with a hateful scowl. "_Moron,_" he hissed coldly. "You're a _fuckin' moron_."

She refused to look at him, her eyes cast to the wooden floorboards as she cradled her burning cheek. She should have expected this to happen, she knew it would be painful, but yet...it seemed to hurt more than her mind had imagined when she dragged her feet back to the tavern as if she were walking to deathrow instead. And it very well might be just that; she was replaceable.

Eustass scoffed at her silence, agitated to the extreme as if she was a bad rash on his skin. "Killer, get Chamberlain. Tell him we're leaving."

She snapped her head towards him, her eyes wide and brows furrowed. She paid no attention to the masked blonde as he left, her eyes locked with Eustass's as he glared down at her. The door was closed, clicking in place and there was silence between the two. Then she spoke. "We can't leave."

"And who says that?" Eustass snapped sourly, leaning over to grab her by the scruff of her shirt and hoisted her up into the air. "I make the rule, calls, _everything_ for this crew. If I wanna go, then we go."

"I—I—" she rasped, trying to collect her thoughts, but it wouldn't mean anything because—

"I don't give a shit," Eustass icily said, cutting her off before she could even get anything out. "You're a pain the ass, ya know? I've known ya only, what, a _month_ and you cause fucking problems for me already. Pisses me off," he growled.

"It's not my fault," she cried, shaking her head. "It's their fault! They are the ones that hurt my tribe, my island, everything—!"

With a roar, Eustass wrapped both hands around her frail neck and pinned her to the wall. "I said: I don't care!" He screamed at her. "Just shut the fuck up about it! I don't care! I do not care, nor will I _ever!_ We're leaving tonight and that's that."

The door then suddenly opened, Killer returning. "We won't be leaving tonight," the masked blonde corrected. "Chamberlain's missing."


	10. Chapter 10

Lily Noir: Angel, Bella and the tribe are naturally blue, but Bella was experimented on, Angel wasn't. The pills have another meaning. So, yes, you did get some things right, but your theory was very good. :)

Alpenwolf: Angel will have a better time with her plan then she thought, you'll see in this chapter.

Sorry for any mistakes.

Disclaimer: I don't own One Piece, but plot and OCs are mine.

* * *

Chapter 10

For the next hour, Kidd paced back and forth furiously in Chamberlain and Killer's shared room. Nothing was out of place; the only thing missing was his navigator's pack, which the man took with him everywhere. "Do you know where he went?" He questioned those in the room.

"Nope," Wire replied bluntly. "I was watching over ship repairs."

Heat shook his head. "I was restocking supplies."

"And I was playing _babysitter_," Killer scoffed from his spot leaning against the doorframe.

Kidd purposely ignored his first mate's comment and continued on with the conversation about his missing navigator. "_Shit,_" he tsked, biting on the tip of his thumb in deep concentration. "We can't leave without Chamberlain. _Fuck._ Fuck, fuck, **_fuck._**"

"_Obviously,_" Killer spat dryly, tossing his head to the side to signal he was rolling his eyes in annoyance. "Now we need to look for him; too bad I wasn't babysitting, huh," Killer sarcastically said as he tapped an impatient finger against his forearm.

Kidd glared at the masked blonde, his eyes narrowing into two agitated slits; someone was having fun pressing his buttons. And you know what, Kidd could do that, too. Then smirked at him wickedly. "You're right," he coolly agreed. "Now get ya ass out there n' look for 'im," and he jabbed a finger to the door.

Killer stiffened, his muscles locking with rage. He stood there for a moment, fury radiating from the stare behind his mask. Though he said nothing and just scoffed and sharply turned away, cursing under his breath.

Kidd knew his first mate wasn't pleased with him, especially since he asked him one too many times to watch over Angel. But what can he say; his Angel wasn't a perfect little girl like the name implied. She had secrets under her belt, which fucking pissed Kidd off, might he add. And that just proved to him that she needed to be watched,_ closely_. And Killer was the man to do it. But that was unimportant right now: Chamberlain was.

After Killer was gone, Kidd went back to pacing; waiting was all he could do now.

"What happens if Chamberlain's in trouble?" Wire broke the silence.

Kidd stopped his pacing, but didn't look toward the man and just looked out the window, a worried frown on his lips. They hadn't done anything yet in the New World to piss someone off besides getting the bran-spanking new title of _The Worst Generation_ due to all the shit he caused in the former half of the Grand Line. But, that wasn't enough for most pirates to rage after him, not yet. Then, he thought that maybe it had to do with Angel's past, yet Killer said the other crew had no business with him or the crew, only her. Technically, she wasn't a member of the crew, still, he considered her his property, and no one screwed with what was his.

Kidd then groaned, flustered; this was too much to deal with right now. "We hope he ain't in trouble," was all he could say.

"And what if he is?" Wire repeated. "Do we go after him? The rumor around town is that the Crimson Dragons own this place."

"We'll be fine," Kidd assured, waving the thought aside. "Those are only rumors. The Stiff running this place says otherwise."

"True," Wire shrugged, indifferent. "I guess we've fought worse than the Crimson Dragons anyway, but what if Killer can't find him?"

"We burn the fucking city to the ground," Kidd said point blank.

Wire glanced towards Heat, who sighed and shook his head.

"Unwise, Boss," Heat replied. "If we don't know where Chamberlain is, we risk burning him alive. Remember last time we did that?"

Kidd scowled. "Yeah, and it worked since none of us died."

"And Doc was pissed because half the crew had third degree burns," Heat dully reminded.

Kidd scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Whatever. If ya have a better idea spit it out."

"Bella," Heat easily spit out.

Kidd stared at him, blinking his eyes once and then twice.

Heat sighed, shaking his head. "Bella is a _dog_, Boss, she can track him. Though, I think you'll need to talk to Angel about it. I doubt you could get Bella to go into wolf form without her help since the shock collar will only make her go werewolf."

Kidd looked away and growled; he really didn't want to talk to _her_ right now. Though, this was for Chamberlain's safety. "Fine," he grumbled and stormed out of the room and went to his own.

He slammed the door behind him, hoping she would jump at the sound, but she was nowhere in sight, which almost caused a vein to burst. His first thought was she left, but a quick sweep of the room and he saw that she merely relocated to the bathroom. She sat on the floor, hunched over with a hand over her shoulder, and Kidd immediately noticed something wrong. She trembled violently as her nails clawed at the skin of her shoulder.

"Oi…" Kidd murmured, cautiously stepping closer.

He leaned over to place a hand to her's that covered her shoulder, but as soon as his fingers brushed against her skin, she yelped and flinched as if his touch was fire. Kidd drew back quickly, utterly blind to the situation. He had no idea what was going on, so he went to the only person that would know: Doc. Kidd left the Skylander's side and then looked for his doctor only to drag him away from sleep.

"Fix her," was all Kidd said, pointing to the Skylander.

Groggily, Doc glared at him through shaggy blonde bangs. "You…annoy me," was all he said in return as stress visibly surfaced when the doctor quickly lit up a cigarette to calm his nerves.

Kidd rolled his eyes. "Just…do whatever it is you do," he ordered, motioning a hand towards the stiff Skylander sitting hunched over on the floor.

Doc grumbled under his breath as he snuffed his fresh cigarette in an empty soap dish before stepping around the Skylander and crouching down to examine her carefully. He hummed in deep thought, his hand grabbing her chin to turn her which way and that. Then he stopped and pulled the skin around her eyes, opening them wider. "Dilated eyes," he began noting. "Clammy skin, locked jaw…" then he put a hand to her chest, which made a small nerve snap inside Kidd, but it was left unnoticed as Doc continued. "Racing heart...yup looks like it."

Kidd blinked in confusion. "What? What the fuck? What's_ it_ look like?"

"She's having an episode," Doc bluntly explained as he fully stood up to pull out a new cigarette.

"An episode…?" Kidd slowly repeated. "As in trauma related?"

"You're smarter than you let on," Doc commented, which made Kidd scowl angrily, but it was ignored. "Yes, you're right. I'm guessing _this—_" and he pointed to the Skylander's hand clutching her shoulder. "—was the trigger," then Doc started to slowly peel her fingers away from her shoulder to reveal a tiny cut. "See, there's a small scar here, close to the cut."

Kidd leaned over, staring in disbelief. "Can something so small really cause something like_ this_ to happen?"

"Memories are powerful things, Kidd" Doc wisely replied with a shrug as he lit up another cigarette. "But anyway, sit with her for awhile," and then he turned on his heel to leave. "Howler if something comes up."

"Wait, what?" Kidd questioned the doctor as he stepped out of the room.

Doc stopped and looked over his shoulder, his brows knotting together in annoyance. "Sit. With. Her." He slowly said, stressing each word. "If. Something. Happens. Get. Me. Got. It?"

"Fuck, don't treat me like a kid," Kidd snapped bitterly.

"You _are_ a Kidd," Doc chuckled dryly.

"_Fuck you!_" Kidd barked, but it meant nothing since Doc had left the building.

Kidd grumbled curses under his breath about the doctor, but then he sighed and glanced back to his Skylander. Doing as the doctor ordered, Kidd sat down beside her. She was completely silent, just like when he first saw her. Wide eyed and trembling, she continued to clutch her shoulder, making Kidd wonder what the hell happened to her.

Then suddenly her body went limp and she tipped over, the side of her head gently resting against his chest. He blinked, glancing down at her. This wasn't the first time she rested her head against his chest, yet this time it felt different. She may have been unconscious, but there were three different ways she could have fallen, but her body chose to make landing on him.

Awkward, Kidd carefully cradled Angel's head and then slowly laid her out on the floor as he stood up.

Treating her as if she was a hyper dog rather than a knocked out person, he held out his hands, motioning her to stay. Then he left to find Doc again.

* * *

Killer returned from his scouting, entering the tavern to find Kidd sitting at the empty bar. Walking over, the masked blonde noticed that his captain looked distant, his amber eyes glazed over as he stared at his untouched beer. "Kidd? You okay?" Killer questioned.

Kidd snapped back to reality and whipped around to face his first mate, his eyes opening a fraction wider. Then they settled down as his brows furrowed in confusion. "Yeah, fine. Totally fine. Why?"

Killer just shrugged and cast off that conversation to the more important one. "I was able to track Chamberlain down. Sorta."

Kidd's brow arched. "_Sorta?_ Whadda ya mean _sorta?_"

"I only know where he was seen last, but I don't know where he is now," Killer explained. "Jacques knew where he went, which explains why no one knew where he was. Anyway, he went to a map and charting store downtown. The cashier said that _soldiers_ took him aside and that was the last anyone saw him."

"_Soldiers…_" Kidd slowly repeated, and then her groaned, pinching his nose in frustration. "Well _fuck._"


End file.
